Preparation and characterization of lead zirconate titanate ceramic fibers with alkoxide-based sol-gel route

Abstract

Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) fibers with diameters from 10μm to 40μm were prepared via a sol-gel route. Several kinds of chemicals were used, including lead acetate trihydrate, zirconium n-butoxide and titanium n-butoxide, in addition to butanol as a solvent. As a water source for hydrolysis reaction, Pb(CH3COO)23H2O was directly used without further adding of water or catalyst conventionally. Acetylacetonate and acetate were added as stabilization agents to obtain stable sols for fiber drawing. The gel-to-ceramic conversion was characterized with thermal analysis, infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. A pure perovskite phase was obtained after heat treatment at 650°C for 1h. By using scanning electron microscope (SEM), it was observed that a lower rate of heat treatment resulted in a denser microstructure of the fibers. The relative permittivity and the P-E hysteresis loop of the crystalline PZT fibers were also measured and discussed in the paper. © 2009 IOP Publishing Ltd.