Plastic deformation and sintering of alumina under high pressure

Plastic deformation of alumina (Al2O3) under high pressure was investigated by observing the shape changes of spherical particles, and the near fully dense transparent bulks were prepared at around 5.5 GPa and 900 °C. Through analyzing the deformation features, densities, and residual micro-strain of the Al2O3 compacts prepared under high pressures and temperatures (2.0–5.5 GPa and 600–1200 °C), the effects of plastic deformation on the sintering behavior of alumina have been demonstrated. Under compression, the microscopic deviatoric stress caused by grain-to-grain contact could initiate the plastic deformation of individual particles, eliminate pores of the polycrystalline samples, and enhance the local atomic diffusion at the grain boundaries, thus produced transparent alumina bulks.