Precursor materials used in additive manufacturing (i.e., three-dimensional printing) of low-density, high-porosity ceramic parts need to be deposited in a uniform, consistent, and predictable manner. Known ceramic precursor materials are often in heterogeneous suspensions that can be difficult to deposit in a controlled way. This difficulty is due to rheological properties of a suspension, such as viscosity and shear-thinning properties, which are relevant to extrusion of the suspension through a nozzle during the additive manufacturing process.
The rheological properties of the suspension can be changed to make the suspension easier to deposit in a controlled way during the additive manufacturing process. However, such changes in the rheological properties of the suspension can also interfere with a sintering process and, therefore, degrade ultimate properties of the manufactured ceramic part. It would be desirable to provide ceramic precursor materials that overcome drawbacks of known ceramic precursor materials.