The Study of the Influence of ZrO<sub>2</sub> Precursor Type and the Temperature of Annealing on the Crystallization of the Tetragonal Polymorph of ZrO<sub>2</sub> in Zirconia-Silica Gels

Materials of the ZrO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> system were obtained by the sol-gel method applying two different types of ZrO<sub>2</sub> precursors: zirconium (IV) n-propoxide Zr(OC<sub>3</sub>H<sub>7</sub>)<sub>4</sub> and z...

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Main Author: Anna Adamczyk
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-11-01
Series:Gels
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/8/11/724
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author Anna Adamczyk
author_facet Anna Adamczyk
author_sort Anna Adamczyk
collection DOAJ
description Materials of the ZrO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> system were obtained by the sol-gel method applying two different types of ZrO<sub>2</sub> precursors: zirconium (IV) n-propoxide Zr(OC<sub>3</sub>H<sub>7</sub>)<sub>4</sub> and zirconium (IV) acetate Zr(OOC<sub>2</sub>H<sub>3</sub>)<sub>4</sub> (organic acetic acid salt) while commonly used tetraethoxysilane TEOS was selected as SiO<sub>2</sub> introducing one. ZrO<sub>2</sub> concentration in synthesized samples varied from 20% to 50% (mol.). After drying for 28 days, all gels were annealed at 500 °C, 1000 °C, and 1200 °C in air. FTIR spectroscopy together with XRD diffraction was selected as the two main structure research methods. SEM microscopy was applied to analyze the local chemical compositions of samples and to observe the morphology of gels’ surfaces. The analysis of FTIR spectra and XRD diffraction patterns allowed us to recognize different ZrO<sub>2</sub> polymorphs which appeared in the samples depending strongly as well on ZrO<sub>2</sub> precursor type as on the temperature of annealing. Samples synthesized by using the zirconium (IV) n-propoxide contained both cubic and tetragonal zirconia phases in general but showed the tendency of the increasing <i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub> content in gels richer in ZrO<sub>2</sub> and heated up to 1200 °C. However, in materials obtained applying zirconium (IV) acetate, the first detected at 500 °C phase was <i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub> which was then conversing to <i>m</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub> form with the increasing temperature in case of samples rich in ZrO<sub>2</sub>. Meanwhile, <i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub> was the predominant phase in samples of the lower content of ZrO<sub>2</sub> but annealed at higher temperatures. By the analysis of changes in band profiles and positions, one can draw conclusions that the structure of studied samples is mostly built up of an amorphous silica matrix, in which different types of zirconia polymorphs create their own crystal lattice. The presence of the particular polymorph depends strongly on the type of zirconia precursor and the temperature of annealing.
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spelling doaj.art-0607472c4f0c4194a4e1e5be31d6115a2023-11-24T04:46:46ZengMDPI AGGels2310-28612022-11-0181172410.3390/gels8110724The Study of the Influence of ZrO<sub>2</sub> Precursor Type and the Temperature of Annealing on the Crystallization of the Tetragonal Polymorph of ZrO<sub>2</sub> in Zirconia-Silica GelsAnna Adamczyk0Faculty of Materials Science and Ceramics, AGH University of Science and Technology, Al. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Kraków, PolandMaterials of the ZrO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> system were obtained by the sol-gel method applying two different types of ZrO<sub>2</sub> precursors: zirconium (IV) n-propoxide Zr(OC<sub>3</sub>H<sub>7</sub>)<sub>4</sub> and zirconium (IV) acetate Zr(OOC<sub>2</sub>H<sub>3</sub>)<sub>4</sub> (organic acetic acid salt) while commonly used tetraethoxysilane TEOS was selected as SiO<sub>2</sub> introducing one. ZrO<sub>2</sub> concentration in synthesized samples varied from 20% to 50% (mol.). After drying for 28 days, all gels were annealed at 500 °C, 1000 °C, and 1200 °C in air. FTIR spectroscopy together with XRD diffraction was selected as the two main structure research methods. SEM microscopy was applied to analyze the local chemical compositions of samples and to observe the morphology of gels’ surfaces. The analysis of FTIR spectra and XRD diffraction patterns allowed us to recognize different ZrO<sub>2</sub> polymorphs which appeared in the samples depending strongly as well on ZrO<sub>2</sub> precursor type as on the temperature of annealing. Samples synthesized by using the zirconium (IV) n-propoxide contained both cubic and tetragonal zirconia phases in general but showed the tendency of the increasing <i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub> content in gels richer in ZrO<sub>2</sub> and heated up to 1200 °C. However, in materials obtained applying zirconium (IV) acetate, the first detected at 500 °C phase was <i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub> which was then conversing to <i>m</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub> form with the increasing temperature in case of samples rich in ZrO<sub>2</sub>. Meanwhile, <i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub> was the predominant phase in samples of the lower content of ZrO<sub>2</sub> but annealed at higher temperatures. By the analysis of changes in band profiles and positions, one can draw conclusions that the structure of studied samples is mostly built up of an amorphous silica matrix, in which different types of zirconia polymorphs create their own crystal lattice. The presence of the particular polymorph depends strongly on the type of zirconia precursor and the temperature of annealing.https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/8/11/724ZrO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> systemsol-gel methodFTIR spectroscopyX-ray diffractionSEM<i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub>
spellingShingle Anna Adamczyk
The Study of the Influence of ZrO<sub>2</sub> Precursor Type and the Temperature of Annealing on the Crystallization of the Tetragonal Polymorph of ZrO<sub>2</sub> in Zirconia-Silica Gels
Gels
ZrO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> system
sol-gel method
FTIR spectroscopy
X-ray diffraction
SEM
<i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub>
title The Study of the Influence of ZrO<sub>2</sub> Precursor Type and the Temperature of Annealing on the Crystallization of the Tetragonal Polymorph of ZrO<sub>2</sub> in Zirconia-Silica Gels
title_full The Study of the Influence of ZrO<sub>2</sub> Precursor Type and the Temperature of Annealing on the Crystallization of the Tetragonal Polymorph of ZrO<sub>2</sub> in Zirconia-Silica Gels
title_fullStr The Study of the Influence of ZrO<sub>2</sub> Precursor Type and the Temperature of Annealing on the Crystallization of the Tetragonal Polymorph of ZrO<sub>2</sub> in Zirconia-Silica Gels
title_full_unstemmed The Study of the Influence of ZrO<sub>2</sub> Precursor Type and the Temperature of Annealing on the Crystallization of the Tetragonal Polymorph of ZrO<sub>2</sub> in Zirconia-Silica Gels
title_short The Study of the Influence of ZrO<sub>2</sub> Precursor Type and the Temperature of Annealing on the Crystallization of the Tetragonal Polymorph of ZrO<sub>2</sub> in Zirconia-Silica Gels
title_sort study of the influence of zro sub 2 sub precursor type and the temperature of annealing on the crystallization of the tetragonal polymorph of zro sub 2 sub in zirconia silica gels
topic ZrO<sub>2</sub>-SiO<sub>2</sub> system
sol-gel method
FTIR spectroscopy
X-ray diffraction
SEM
<i>t</i>-ZrO<sub>2</sub>
url https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/8/11/724
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