Electrical conductivity of silicate glasses with tetravalent cations substituting Si

The effects of substituting Si by M4 + cations in soda-lime silica glasses were analyzed by impedance spectroscopy in the frequency range of 1 Hz–1 MHz. The glass composition was (mol%) 22Na2O·8CaO·65SiO2·5MO2, M = Si, Ti, Ge, Zr, Sn, and Ce. Although the Na+ concentration in the glasses is constant, the Zr-containing glass exhibits the highest dc conductivity and the lowest activation energy, while the Ce-containing glass exhibits the lowest conductivity. The activation energies obtained experimentally agree with those obtained by a theoretical equation proposed by Anderson and Stuart. The differences in electrical conductivity presented by the several M-containing glasses are attributed to the effect that the M4 + ion has on the mobility of the diffusing Na+ ion.