Aluminum nitride (AlN) has excellent electrical insulation property, high thermal conductivity, and a low thermal expansion coefficient; therefore, it is widely used as a heat sink, heat-conductive filler, and heat dissipation substrate. However, it is well known that the AlN-based materials have disadvantages such as low sinterability and poor mechanical properties. In this study, the effects of addition of various amounts (1-6 wt.%) of sintering additives Y₂O₃ and Sm₂O₃ on the thermal and mechanical properties of AlN samples pressureless sintered at 1850°C in an N₂ atmosphere for a holding time of 2 h are examined. All AlN samples exhibit relative densities of more than 97%. It showed that the higher thermal conductivity as the Y₂O₃ content increased than the Sm₂O₃ additive, whereas all AlN samples exhibited higher mechanical properties as Sm₂O₃ content increased. The formation of secondary phases by reaction of Y₂O₃, Sm₂O₃ with oxygen from AlN lattice influenced the thermal and mechanical properties of AlN samples due to the reaction of the oxygen contents in AlN lattice.

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• Effects of YH2 addition on pressureless sintered AlN ceramics
  Liang Wang, Wei-Ming Guo, Peng-Fei Sheng, Li-Fu Lin, Xiao Zong, Shang-Hua Wu
  Journal of the European Ceramic Society.2023; 43(3): 862.     CrossRef

To improve the mechanical properties of aluminum, graphene has been used as a reinforcing material, yielding graphene-reinforced aluminum matrix composites (GRAMCs). Dispersion of graphene materials is an important factor that affects the properties of GRAMCs, which are mainly manufactured by mechanical mixing methods such as ball milling. However, the use of only mechanical mixing process is limited to achieve homogeneous dispersion of graphene. To overcome this problem, in this study, we have prepared composite materials by coating aluminum particles with graphene by a self-assembly reaction using poly vinylalcohol and ethylene diamine as coupling agents. The scanning electron microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy results confirm the coating of graphene on the Al surface. Bulk density of the sintered composites by spark plasma sintering achieved a relative density of over 99% up to 0.5 wt.% graphene oxide content.