Effect of monomer structure on carbonization process of gel-cast green body and electrical property of sintered body

In this study, the gel-cast green bodies of alumina/graphite composites were fabricated using various epoxy monomers. The effects of the molecular structure of the monomers on the carbonization behavior and electrical conductivity of the reductively sintered bodies were systemically investigated. In the case of carbonization behavior under a temperature range of 300–700 °C, the amount of ether group in epoxy monomers exhibited influence on carbon residue amount. Moreover, carbonization of the multifunctional epoxy monomer induced fewer defects in the carbon network than carbonization of the bifunctional monomer. In addition, the graphitization characteristics of sintered bodies under 1600 °C correlated well with carbonization process. The relationship between carbonization/graphitization and the electrical properties of the sintered bodies is discussed in this paper.