Abstract
Mg2SiO4 gels were prepared from alkoxide precursors, and the formation of the forsterite crystal phase was studied after heat treatments up to 1200°C. Prehydrolyzed TEOS in solution with 2-methoxyethanol was mixed with Mg(OEt)2, and the solution was hydrolyzed using excess water. The resultant gels were dried at 100°C to form xerogels which were subsequently powdered. These powders were characterized using thermal analysis (DTA and TGA), surface area analysis (BET), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).
DTA and XRD indicated that forsterite crystallized at 770°C, and by 1000°C the powders were predominantly crystalline. BET gave powder surface areas between 400 and 550 m2 g−1. TEM revealed angular particles with sizes between 0.2 and 2 μm. The low temperature of crystallization of forsterite indicates a high degree of intimate mixing between the precursor alkoxides, although XRD indicated some degree of inhomogeneity.
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Mitchell, M.B., Jackson, D. & James, P.F. Preparation and Characterization of Forsterite (Mg2SiO4) Xerogels. Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology 13, 359–364 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1008696522312
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1008696522312