EXCELLENCE RESEARCH Program - CEEX:

OXIDE COMPOUNDS SYNTHESIS USING UNCONVENTIONAL SYNTHESIS METHODS – ELLABORATION OF THEORETICAL BACKGROUND AND APPLICATIONS FOR INDUCED PROPERTIES MATERIALS

Acronym: MENESCO

Thematic area S/T cf Annex 1: 4.1. Nanoscience, nanotechnology; 4.2. Materials; 4.3. New productions
Contract number: 51-2006, subprogram 2

Project manager: Prof. dr. ing. Ioan LAZAU

 

The synthesis of oxide compounds using unconventional synthesis methods (MENSCO) represent the most modern solution for obtaining advanced ceramic materials: nanocrystalline powders, controlled porosity films, etc. The main advantages of these methods are: a significant decrease of the temperatures and/or the soaking time related to the annealing phase in order to obtain the designed compounds, high purity, advanced dispersion degree (nanoparticles) of the resulted powders and, the most important, wide possibilities of controlling the characteristics of the product due to the synthesis conditions.
The present project aims the elaboration of studies having a background and applicative character concerning the synthesis of a wide range of oxide materials (high reactivity powders and controlled porosity films) by unconventional routes.
The project aims the establishment of a correlation between the synthesis method which has been used, the working conditions and the characteristics of the resulted product. In order to achieve this purpose, there will be pursued the influence of the fallowing parameters: the nature of the used alcoxid, temperature, pH and influence of the drying conditions upon the shape and pore size of sol-gel Al2O3 ceramic films (used in the liquid purifying processes). There is also presented a new synthesis method based upon the thermal conversion of heteropolynuclear complex combinations resulted from the oxidation of polyols (1,2 – ethandiol; 1,2,3 - propantriol) with metallic nitrates. There will also be pursued the advantages given by this method (concerning the synthesis temperature, particle size and morphology) in obtaining spinel, cordierite and mullite powders in the system MeO-R2O3 (Me = Zn, Co; R = Al, Cr). In comparison, the same powders will be synthesized via combustion route. In this case, there will be pursued the correlation of the reactivity of various nitrates with the nature of the fuel (urea, glycine, alanine) in connection with the morphology and size of the resulted particles.
The establishment of the optimum synthesis conditions for oxide compounds using the presented unconventional methods plays an important role in developing new knowledge in the high performance materials area, with applications in different industrial fields. As a consequence, the goal of our research topic harmonizes with the materials thematic area; new developments. Characterization of the resulted compounds by X-ray diffraction and electronic microscopy allows estimating the nanocrystallites size, the particle shape and size as well as the nanopore size - in the case of ceramic films. This is the reason that justifies the inclusion of the project within the nanoscience thematic area.
The analysis of the obtained results generates new knowledge concerning the phenomena that are taking place at nanometric scale offering the prerequisites for extending to the pilot scale and then to the technological scale of the recommended methods. This is why the project can be included in nanotechnologies and nanoscience thematic area.
We think that, for our country, which imports most of the necessary amount of thermoresistant pigments and the ceramic films having controlled porosity are not event manufactured, the research suggested within the framework of the project are justified, necessary and of great importance.