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Crystallization, mechanical, and optical properties of transparent, nanocrystalline gahnite glass‐ceramics
Author(s) -
Molla Atiar R.,
Rodrigues Alisson M.,
Singh Shiv Prakash,
Lancelotti Ricardo Felipe,
Zanotto Edgar D.,
Rodrigues Ana C.M.,
Reza Dousti Mohammad,
Camargo Andrea S.S.,
Magon Claudio José,
Silva Igor D′Anciães Almeida
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of the american ceramic society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.9
H-Index - 196
eISSN - 1551-2916
pISSN - 0002-7820
DOI - 10.1111/jace.14753
Subject(s) - materials science , nanocrystalline material , ceramic , crystallization , glaze , mineralogy , spinel , precipitation , spectroscopy , chemical engineering , glass ceramic , sintering , composite material , metallurgy , nanotechnology , chemistry , engineering , physics , quantum mechanics , meteorology
This paper describes the preparation of a transparent glass‐ceramic from the SiO 2 ‐K 2 O‐ZnO‐Al 2 O 3 ‐TiO 2 system containing a single crystalline phase, gahnite (ZnAl 2 O 4 ). TiO 2 was used as a nucleating agent for the heat‐induced precipitation of gahnite crystals of 5‐10 nm. The evolution of the ZnAl 2 O 4 spinel structure through the gradual formation of Al‐O bonds was examined by infrared spectroscopy. The dark brown color of the transparent precursor glass and glass‐ceramic was eliminated using CeO 2 . The increase in transparency of the CeO 2 ‐doped glass and glass‐ceramics was demonstrated by UV ‐visible absorption spectroscopy. EPR measurements confirmed the presence of Ce 3+ ions, indicating that CeO 2 was effective in eliminating the brown color introduced by Ti 3+ ions via oxidation to Ti +4 . The hardness of the glass‐ceramic was 30% higher than that of the as‐prepared glasses. This work offers key guidelines to produce hard, transparent glass‐ceramics which may be potential candidates for a variety of technological applications, such as armor and display panels.