Article,
Effect of Sintering Temperature on Microstructure and Densification of La and Ta Doped BiFeO3
International Journal of Innovative Science and Modern Engineering (IJISME), 2 (3): 13-19 (February 2014)
Abstract
The role of codoping by La & Ta and sintering conditions on the densification, phase and microstructure of BiFeO3 (BFO) ceramic have been investigated in this study. Single phase Bi0.8La0.2Fe1-xTaxO3 (BLFTO) ceramics with x = 0.0, 0.01, 0.03 and 0.05 were synthesized by the conventional solid-state reaction method. The BLFTO dried pellets were calcined at 800oC for 2 h and sintered at temperatures in the range of 875-975oC for 4h. Percent theoretical density (%TD) as high as 96.8% was attained in this research. Phase analysis by X–ray diffraction (XRD) indicated that a possible structural transition from rhombohedral to tetragonal occurred in the BLFTO ceramics. Moreover, microstructural investigation using the field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) showed that an increase in Ta5+ doping content to 0.05 mole fraction reduces the grain size from 6 µm in Bi0.8La0.2FeO3 to 0.8 µm in Bi0.8La0.2Fe0.95Ta0.05O3 when sintered at 975oC for 4h.
