Sintering of Multilayered Porous Structures: Part I-Constitutive Models

Theoretical analyses of shrinkage and distortion kinetics during sintering of bilayered porous structures are carried out. The developed modeling framework is based on the continuum theory of sintering; it enables the direct assessment of the cofiring process outcomes and of the impact of process controlling parameters. The derived “master sintering curve”-type solutions are capable of describing and optimizing the generic sintering shrinkage and distortion kinetics for various material systems. The approach utilizes the material-specific parameters, which define the relative kinetics of layer shrinkages such as the relative intensity of sintering, and employs the conversion between real and specific times of sintering. A novel methodology is also developed for the determination of the ratio of the shear viscosities of the layer’s fully dense materials. This new technique enables the determination of all input parameters necessary for modeling sintering of bilayers using experimental techniques similar to optical dilatometry applied to each individual layer and to a symmetric trilayered porous structure based on the two-layer materials utilized in the bilayered system. Examples of sintering different porous bilayered systems are presented to justify the capability of the model in predicting and optimizing sintering kinetics.