Processing of concentrated aqueous fluorapatite suspensions by slip casting

In order to produce stable aqueous fluorapatite (FA) suspensions, its surface reactivity in an aqueous solution having two initial pH values with a concentration of ammonium polyacrylate (NH(4)PA) was investigated as a function of time. The rheological behaviour of concentrated aqueous FA slips stabilized with NH(4)PA was studied; besides, the effect of poly(vinyl)alcohol (PVA) addition on the relative viscosity of the suspensions was investigated. The influence of the slip rheology on the microstructure of the resultant green slip cast compacts and their sintering behaviour were determined. Upon the FA introduction in the aqueous solutions, an initial release of F anions located at the surface was found, which was not dependent on the pH and the presence of dispersant. The increase in the initial pH of the solution above 7 and/or the addition of NH(4)PA markedly reduced the Ca++/H+ exchange reaction rate. As a result, well-stabilized concentrated aqueous suspensions could be obtained at pH close to 9. The minimum viscosity of 40 vol.% slips at pH 8.9 occurred at 0.6 wt% of NH(4)PA added. The addition of 0.5 wt% PVA to a well-stabilized FA slip caused aggregation of particles by a depletion flocculation mechanism, thereby increasing the slip viscosity. The greater permeability of cakes produced from slips with high viscosity values (0.5 wt% PVA) increased the casting rate. The highest sintered densities were obtained for the compacts prepared from the slips without PVA, due to the denser particle packing achieved in the green bodies.