EFFECT OF FIRING TEMPERATURE ON THE PHASE FORMATION, MICROSTRUCTURE, AND ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF BST-BZN CERAMICS

Lead-free 0.88Ba0.8Sr0.2TiO3-0.12Bi(Zn2/3Nb1/3)O3 (BST-BZN) ceramics were prepared by the solid-state combustion technique, using glycine as fuel. The BST-BZN ceramics were calcined between 900–1100°C for 2 h and sintered between 1300–1400°C for 2 h. A pure perovskite phase with a pseudo-cubic structure was observed by XRD and confirmed by the Rietveld refinement technique. The average particle and grain sizes tended to increase with increased calcination and sintering temperatures. The measured density was in the range of 5.65–5.90 g/cm³. The dielectric constant (εr) and dielectric loss (tan δr) decreased with increased sintering temperatures, up to 1350°C and then increased. The energy storage density (Wtotal) and energy storage efficiency (η) of the ceramics were 0.488 J/cm³ and 94.1% measured at 100 kV/cm, respectively, obtained by the sample sintered at 1375°C