3. Solid State Reactions and Sintering

Solid state reactions are mainly used to synthesize fine raw particles and to sinter advanced ceramics. To control the powder characteristics and sintering process, several analyses have been conducted based on classical thermodynamics and kinetics. In this chapter, we describe the thermodynamics and kinetics including the temperature-dependent standard free energies of formation and diffusion coefficients. Then, practical studies of solid state reaction kinetics are introduced using classical theories, such as the Jander and Ginstling-Brounstein equations. Finally, we discuss classical sintering theory using a two-particle model. Although several novel sintering methods recently have been developed, classical sintering theory is still important.