Blow spun strontium zirconate fibres produced from a sol-gel precursor

A zirconium sol was produced from the hydrolysis and immediate peptization of a zirconium alkoxide, which was found to be stable with the addition of a large proportion of a strontium salt, even up to equimolar a mounts. Gel fibres were successfully blow spun from this doped sol, which on subsequent heating produced ceramic fibres of orthorhombic strontium zirconate. The fibres were characterized by various techniques. The fibres were found to begin forming SrZrO3 at 400 degrees C and were present as single phase orthorhombic strontium zirconate at 800 degrees C and above. The ceramic fibres had no discernible grain structure a nd the average crystallite size was calculated to be on ly 20 nm at th is temperature, but the fibres contained small surface pores (< 0.2 mu m) which continued to increase in size on subsequent heating, resulting in a weak and brittle fibre. Therefore, more investigation is required into sintering and the development of high temperature properties. (C) 1998 Kluwer Academic Publishers.