Low temperature synthesis of a new yellowish brown ceramic pigment based on FeNbO4@ZrSiO4

FeNbO4@ZrSiO4 ceramic pigments have been successfully synthesized with MgO as mineralizer by an environment-friendly solid-state reaction method at low temperature. The formation of ZrSiO4 has been investigated by X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimeter analysis, respectively. The reflectance spectrum and color properties of the FeNbO4@ZrSiO4 pigments have been measured and analyzed. Results illustrate that MgO together with Fe2O3-Nb2O5 can promote the formation of ZrSiO4 and decrease the synthesis temperature to 1050 °C that is 400-500 °C lower than the characteristic temperature of ZrSiO4 formation. A series of FeNbO4@ZrSiO4 pigments with high thermostability present color changing from bud yellow to earthy yellow as a function of Fe2O3-Nb2O5 content. The preparation method used in this work possesses many advantages of safety, simplicity of processing and is free of gas phases, indicating a more favorable method to synthesize ZrSiO4-based pigments. The new yellowish brown FeNbO4@ZrSiO4 pigments are promising for high-temperature ceramic pigments applications.