Injection moulding in water is receiving great interest for the low-cost pr
oduction of near-net-shaped ceramic parts. In this technique, aqueous suspe
nsions are gelated in the presence of a low concentration of gelling additi
ve. In this work, alumina bodies are injection moulded in water by adding 1
wt.% agarose. The agarose is incorporated to the previously dispersed slur
ry and the blend is then milled in a ball mill. Agarose dissolves upon heat
ing, but the dispersed slurry maintains stability up to 70 degreesC. Rheolo
gical behaviour is studied as a function of temperature for the ceramic slu
rry with and without agarose. The injected parts show a homogeneous microst
ructure without binder agglomerates, (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rig
hts reserved.