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Abstract Zirconium dioxide (ZrO2) fibers are used widely as heat-insulating materials for high-temperature applications. Ceiba is a type of natural fiber that shows good heat-insulating properties because of its hollow… Click to show full abstract
Abstract Zirconium dioxide (ZrO2) fibers are used widely as heat-insulating materials for high-temperature applications. Ceiba is a type of natural fiber that shows good heat-insulating properties because of its hollow structure. Inspired by this fact, in this study, ceiba is used as a template for fabricating hollow ZrO2 fibers with excellent heat-insulating properties. During the fabrication process, the ceiba fibers are immersed into a solution of zirconium oxychloride octahydrate (ZrOCl2·8H2O) and yttrium nitrate hexahydrate (Y(NO3)3·6H2O). Then, hollow yttria-stabilized ZrO2 fibers are obtained by drying and sintering the soaked ceiba fibers in air at high temperatures. The microstructure, phase composition, pore size distribution, infrared absorption properties, and thermal conductivity of the hollow ZrO2 fibers are analyzed. The results show that the synthesized biomorphic ZrO2 fibers inherit the hollow structure of the ceiba template. Further, the heat-insulating properties of the biomorphic ZrO2 fibers are significantly better than those of conventional solid ZrO2 fibers.
Journal Title: Ceramics International
Year Published: 2017
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