The effect of oxide additives-CuO, SiO2, Y2O3, Bi2O3 and ZnO in 1-10 mol% on the sintering and superconducting properties of YBa2Cu3O7 was studied. SEM studies indicated improvement of grain size and interconnectivity due to the additives, the best results being obtained with Bi2O3, SiO2 and Y2O3. The superconducting transition temperature is unaffected (92±2 K) even with 10 mol % of the additives. ZnO, however, decreases the T c as expected. © 1989 Indian Academy of Sciences.