Low-temperature molten salt synthesis of YAlO3 powders assisted by an electrochemical process

YAlO3 (YAP) powders were successfully synthesized by a unique molten salt method, where YAP precursor was prepared by an electrochemical method at room temperature, followed by calcining it at a temperature of not exceeding 400 °C for 8 h using LiNO3 as the molten salt medium. XRD analysis and TEM observation show that well-crystallized YAP powders can be obtained at 400 °C for a holding time of 8 h with 1:16 ratio of YAP precursor to LiNO3 by weight. Greatly reduced temperature of forming YAP should be attributed to the incorporation of LiNO3 salt in preparing process.