CeO2 nanoparticles, employed in a lot of fields due to their excellent oxidation and reduction properties, are synthesized through a solvothermal process, and a high specific surface area is shown by controlling, among various process parameters in the solvothermal process, the type of solvent. The synthesized CeO2 nanoparticles are about 11~13 nm in the crystallite size and their specific surface area is about 65.38~84.65 m2/g, depending on the amount of ethanol contained in the solvent for the solvothermal process; all synthesized CeO2 nanoparticles shows a fluorite structure. The dispersibility and microstructure of the synthesized CeO2 nanoparticles are investigated according to the species of dispersant and the pH value of the solution; an improvement in dispersibility is shown with the addition of dispersants and control of the pH. Various dispersing properties appear according to the dispersant species and pH in the solution with the synthesized CeO2 nanoparticles, indicating that improved dispersing properties in the synthesized CeO2 nanoparticles can be secured by applying dispersant and pH control simultaneously.

The usual ceramic process of mixing and milling in state of oxides ZrO2 and CeO2 was adopted in this study in a wet process to manufacture Ce-TZP. CeO2-ZrO2 ceramics containing 8~20 mol% CeO2 were made by heat treatment at 1250~1500˚C for 5hr. The maximum dispersion point of every slurry manufactured with a mixture of ZrO2 and CeO2 was neat at pH10. A stable slurry with average particle size of 90 nm can be manufactured when it is dispersed with the use of ammonia water and polycarboxylic acid ammonium. The sintered Ce-TZP ceramics manufactured with the addition of CeO2 in a concentration of less than 10 mol% progressed to the fracture of the specimen due to the existence of a monoclinic phase of more than 30% at room temperature. More than 99% of the tetragonal phase was created for the sintered body with the addition of CeO2 beyond 18 mol%, but the degradation of the mechanical properties on the entire specimen was brought about due to the CeO2 existing in a percentage above 3%. Consequently, the optimal Ce-TZP level combined in the oxide state was identified to be 16 mol% of CeO2 contents.