Abstract
LAS (lithium aluminosilicate) sol was synthesized using the hydrolysis-condensation reaction of TEOS, chelated Al(OBus)3 and Li-salt with H2O in alcohol (EtOH+2-Propanol) medium. Effects of important reaction parameters on the properties of sol and gel-derived LAS were examined. The crystallization of the sol-gel derived LAS with ${\beta}$-spodumene composition began at ∼600$^{\circ}C$, and a series of polymorphic transformations occurred as temperature was increased to 1100$^{\circ}C$: amorphous LAS\longrightarrowhexagonal LiAl(SiO3)2\longrightarrow${\beta}$-spodumene. Lowering Li content in the gel enhanced densification and retarded the crystallization significantly. Optimum reaction conditions of LAS sol formation for thin coating applications were derived from rheological measurements, and these can be summarized as: H2O/total alkoxides molar ratio=4, pH=∼2.5, and aging time of ∼250h.