Silicon carbide (SiC) was sintered using two different additives: AlN-Y2O3 or AlN-CRE2O3. CRE2O3 is a mixed oxide formed by Y2O3 and rare-earth oxides. The crystalline structures of the phases were analyzed by high-resolution X-ray diffraction using synchrotron light source. The results of the Rietveld refinement of the mixed oxide show a solid solution formation. In both silicon carbide samples prepared using AlN-Y2O3 or AlN-CRE2O3 3C (beta-phase) and 6H (alpha-phase) polytypes were found. The structural and microstructural results for both samples were similar. This is an indication of the viability of the use of CRE2O3 in substitution for Y2O3 as additive to obtain dense materials.
SiC; liquid phase; X-ray diffraction; synchrotron; Rietveld method
