High-concentrated zirconia suspensions stabilized by cellulose nanocrystals

In this work, cellulose nano crystals (CNC) as a biodegradable and non-toxic dispersant were used in water-based suspensions of zirconia to examine their stabilization in ceramic processing. The zirconia suspensions for solid content, pH and CNC concentration were studied and the optimum pH value and minimum CNC concentration to produce stable highly concentrated water-based suspensions were determined. The achieved stability was found to be due to the adsorption of CNC nanofibers around the zirconia particles revealed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Suspensions with the lowest viscosity and highest stability over 24 h achieved at pH 4 i.e., 30 wt% zirconia particles stabilized with the addition of 1 wt% CNC.