INFLUENCE OF DEFLOCCULANTS ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF ALUMINA BODIES OBTAINED BY SLIP CASTING

Conformation of alumina bodies with differential porosities was carried out using a slip-casting technique. Preliminary results, showing the relationship between changes of rheological properties of the suspensions caused by pH variation and wall characteristics of the bodies, have been reported previously. The research was continued in order to establish the dependence of the structure of flow units in suspension on type and amount of deflocculants and its influence on the porosity of the walls obtained by slip casting. Rheometry, sedimentometry and electrophoresis were used to characterize the suspensions. Mercury porosimetry enabled the determination of porous structure. Results show a strong correlation between the properties of the suspensions and the characteristics of the presintered bodies and corroborate the possibility of fabrication of articles with differential porosities.