The effect of CuO:B2O3 on the microstructural development of KSr2Nb5O15 was investigated. The materials were sintered in two stages: heating to 550 °C for 2 h and soon afterwards heating to 1200 °C for 5 h. The microstructure of the ceramics was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The SEM micrographs of the ceramic without dopants revealed a porous microstructure with small grains with 2.33 μm average size and larger grains of 1.09 μm average size. The doped materials presented a porous microstructure with larger grains, which are surrounded by smaller grains of irregular shapes. There is evidence of secondary phase formation in the ceramic system doped with 0.5wt.%t CuO + 0.5wt.% B2O3. However, as the amount of boron oxide increased, there are no secondary phases. Twin boundaries are also evidenced in the ceramic systems doped with CuO:B2O3. The grain size distribution was also evaluated, presenting a distribution of the bimodal type. The values of the average grain diameter of grains were obtained. The analysis of grain size distribution showed that there was an increase in the mean grain size as a function of dopants and a more uniform grain size distribution relative to the other compositions for the KSN ceramic doped with 0.5 wt.% CuO + 2.0 wt.% B2O3.
KSr2Nb5O15; copper oxide; boron oxide; liquid phase sintering; microstructural evolution
