Role of microstructure reactivity and surface diffusion in explaining flash (ultra-rapid) sintering kinetics

The competition between sintering and coarsening is cited by numerous authors as one of the potential factors for explaining the ultra-rapid sintering kinetics of flash sintering. In particular, surface diffusion is a mechanism decreasing the driving force of sintering by changing the initial highly reactive microstructures (particle contact) into poorly reactive porous skeleton structures (spherical porosity). We show by finite element simulations that flash SPS experiments high specimen temperatures close to 2000 degrees C. These high temperatures are not sufficient to explain the ultra-rapid sintering kinetics if typical spherical pore theoretical moduli are employed. On the contrary, reactive experimentally determined moduli succeed in explaining the ultra-rapid sintering kinetics. Mesoscale simulations evidenced that the origin of such reactive experimental moduli is a porous skeleton geometry with a significant delay in surface diffusion and particle rearrangement. This highlights the important role of the surface diffusion negation (favoring higher stress intensification factor) in flash sintering.