In the Pb(Zr0,525TiO0,475)O-3 system, two powders were produced by chemical co-precipitation and mechanical mixing of Pb(NO3)(2), Zr(OC3H7)(4) and Ti(OC3HO4. The powders were characterized with regard to their specific surface area, particle size distribution, phases present and the pore size distribution of the pressed powder tablets. The co-precipitated powder was sintered already at 750 degrees C to 99 % of its theoretical density. The mechanically-mixed powders reached only 62.5 % of the theoretical density at 900 degrees C sintering temperature, although they had a higher specific surface area and finer particle size than the co-precipitated powder. The better sintering behavior of the co-precipitated powder can be explained by a narrow pore size distribution and small pore size in its pressed powder tablets. This is further proof that a determination of the pore size distribution of pressed powder tablets gives reliable indications about the sintering behavior.

Keywords: sintering; PZT-powder; piezoelectric