Preparation of β-Li2TiO3 pebbles by a modified indirect wet chemistry method

•β-Li2TiO3 powders via hydrothermal method are used as raw materials.•A mixture of the acetone and carbon tetrachloride bath is used.•The wet gel pebbles can be fabricated at room temperature.

β-Li2TiO3 pebbles were fabricated by a modified indirect wet chemistry method. The first feature lies in that β-Li2TiO3 powders via hydrothermal method were used as raw materials. The second one lies in that a mixture of the acetone and carbon tetrachloride was used for formation and aging of the pebbles at room temperature. The phase identification of the β-Li2TiO3 sintered pebbles was conducted by the X-ray Diffraction analysis. The morphology of the sintered β-Li2TiO3 pebbles was observed by Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope. The experimental results show that the β-Li2TiO3 pebbles with about 1.56 mm in diameter, a better sphericity of 1.02 and relative sintered density of 95.8%T.D. are successfully fabricated when sintered at 1100 °C for 6 h in ambient conditions. The grains in the pebbles are polyhedral brick-shaped, and homogeneous in size distribution. The morphology evolution and relative density of the β-Li2TiO3 pebbles are governed by the sintering temperature, between 1050 °C and 1150 °C. More homogeneous in grain size, less porosity, and higher densification of the β-Li2TiO3 pebbles can be obtained at 1100 °C.

Graphical abstractβ-Li2TiO3 pebbles with about 1.56 mm in diameter, a better sphericity of 1.02 and relative sintered density of 95.8%T.D. are successfully fabricated when sintered at 1100 °C for 6 h in ambient conditions.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide