Influence of Power and Synthesis Time in the Formation of Mullite Obtained by Microwave Heating

Abstract

Front of the large number of applications of the mullite mineral, many researchers seek to synthesize it from the mixture of Al2O3and SiO2powders, or from aluminossilicates, such as smectite. The synthesis of mullite from clays via rapid heating by microwaves emerges as an alternative process. This process accelerates the kinetics of nucleation and the development of mullite phase. Thus, the aim of this work is to study the effect of power and timeon synthesis of mullite from clay, via rapid heating in microwave. The synthesis times were 15 and 20 minutes, with powers of 1.26 and 1.44kW. The obtained powderswere characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The best results were obtained with a power of 1.44kW for 20 minutes.