Academic Journal of Materials & Chemistry, 2026, 7(1); doi: 10.25236/AJMC.2026.070115.
Geng Hou1,2, Zhenzhong Sun1, Yang Yang1
1School of Mechanical Engineering, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan, 523808, China
2School of Materials Science and Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, 710049, China
This study attempted to incorporate mullite whiskers into lead zirconate titanate (PZT) piezoelectric ceramics, and a PZT-based composite ceramic containing 1 wt% and 2 wt% whiskers was fabricated. During the characterization of the microstructure of the samples using scanning electron microscopy, it was unexpectedly observed that the introduction of the whiskers led to the formation of distinct pit-like defects on the surface of the PZT ceramic, with whisker enrichment occurring in regions adjacent to the pits. Based on an analysis of the thermophysical properties of the constituent materials, a possible formation mechanism for the pits is proposed: during the cooling stage of sintering, the mullite whiskers, which possess a higher coefficient of thermal expansion than the PZT matrix, undergo larger contraction. Through interfacial bonding, the whiskers exert a dragging effect on the surrounding PZT matrix, driving the matrix to migrate toward the whisker-enriched regions. This migration results in a volume void in the whisker-depleted regions, ultimately leading to the formation of surface pits. In addition, the influence of whisker content on the degree of pit defects was also briefly analyzed.
Mullite whisker; PZT ceramic; Surface morphology; Pit
Geng Hou, Zhenzhong Sun, Yang Yang. Influence of mullite whisker incorporation on the surface morphology of PZT ceramic. Academic Journal of Materials & Chemistry (2026), Vol. 7, Issue 1: 108-114. https://doi.org/10.25236/AJMC.2026.070115.
[1] AK Zak, ShT Yazdi, ME Abrishami, AM Hashim. A review on piezoelectric ceramics and nanostructures: fundamentals and fabrications [J]. Journal of the Australian Ceramic Society, 2024, 60: 723-753.
[2] DM Pan. Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) piezoelectric ceramics: applications and prospects in human motion monitoring [J]. Ceramics-Silikáty, 2024, 68(3): 444-458.
[3] KS Arya, RP Singh, T Chakrabarti. Novel liquid–phase flash sintering of lead zirconate titanate piezo-ceramics [J]. Journal of the American Ceramic Society, 2024, 107: 8007-8022.
[4] SR Sangawar, B Praveenkumar. Structural and electrical properties of low temperature sintered PZT ceramics [J]. Ferroelectrics, 2017, 517: 66-74.
[5] HB Li, Y Li, DW Wang, R Lu, J Yuan, MS Cao. Effects of ZnO nanoneedles addition on the mechanical and piezoelectric properties of hard PZT-based composites [J]. Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics, 2013, 24: 1463-1468.
[6] T Yamamoto, H Igarashi, K Okazaki. Electrical and mechanical properties of SiC whisker reinforced PZT ceramics [J]. Ferroelectrics, 1985, 63: 281-288.
[7] PF Becher, C-H Hsueh, P Angelini, TN Tiegs. Toughening behavior in whisker-reinforced ceramic matrix composites [J]. Journal of the American Ceramic Society, 1988, 71(12): 1050-1061.
[8] JH Zhang, HD Wu, SX Zhang, JS Yu, SE Hou. Preparation of mullite whiskers and their enhancement effect on ceramic matrix composites [J]. Journal of Wuhan University of Technology-Materials Science Edition, 2013, 28: 471-475.
[9] T Robertson. Mullite whisker enhanced zirconia toughened alumina ceramic matrix composite for high temperature applications [D]. Ottawa, Ontario: Carleton University, 2014.
[10] H Schneider, RX Fischer, J Schreuer. Mullite: crystal structure and related properties [J]. Journal of the American Ceramic Society, 2015, 98(10): 2948-2967
[11] D Risold, J-I Nagata, RO Suzuki. Thermodynamic description of the Pb-O system [J]. Journal of Phase Equilibria, 1998, 19(3): 213-233.
[12] WM Kriven, JW Palko, S Sinogeikin, JD Bass, A Sayir, G Brunauer, H Boysen, F Frey, J Schneider. High temperature single crystal properties of mullite [J]. Journal of the European Ceramic Society, 1999, 19: 2529-2541.
[13] J-S Park, J-H Kim. Coefficients of thermal expansion for single crystal piezoelectric fiber composites [J]. Composites: Part B, 2007, 38: 795-799.
[14] H Hoshyarmanesh, N Ebrahimi, A Jafari, P Hoshyarmanesh, M Kim, H-H Park. PZT/PZT and PZT/BiT composite piezo-sensors in aerospace SHM applications: photochemical metal organic + infiltration deposition and characterization [J]. Sensors, 2019, 19(1): 13.
[15] CTS Denmark A/S (formerly Ferroperm Piezoceramics). What is the thermal expansion coefficient for Ferroperm PZT? [EB/OL]. [2026-06-06]. https://www.ferropermpiezoceramics.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/TEC.pdf.
[16] AB Schroeder, ETA Dobson, CT Rueden, P Tomancak, F Jug, KW Eliceiri. The ImageJ ecosystem: Open-source software for image visualization, processing, and analysis [J]. Protein Science, 2021, 30(1): 234-249.