Processing and Properties of Low-Fire Ni–Cu–Zn Ferrite with V2O5

Vanadium oxide has been found to be an effective sintering aid for preparation of dense Ni–Cu–Zn ferrite. The addition of a small amount of V2O5 (1–2 wt%) in the Ni–Cu–Zn ferrite enhances the densification greatly, but reduces the activation energy of densification significantly. Moreover, the grain growth becomes more evident when V2O5 is present. A chemical reaction taking place at the interface of V2O5/Ni–Cu–Zn ferrite, which results in reactive liquid phase sintering, is attributed to the above results. However, the above interfacial reaction also causes segregation of NiO onto grain boundaries and dissolution of V2O5 into the ferrite, yielding reduction in initial magnetic permeability.