Microstructural evolution in sol–gel derived P2O5-doped cordierite powders

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the effect of various amounts of P2O5 additive on the microstructural evolution of cordierite. In this research work, cordierite powders were prepared by sol–gel processing. The phase and microstructural evolution of the powders were characterised by DTA, XRD and SEM. The P2O5 additive was found to promote the μ-cordierite to α-cordierite transition at low concentrations, while a non-steady effect was shown for higher concentrations. The effect of P2O5 on the activation of cordierite can be attributed to the nucleation of P2O5 and the formation of mullite and xMgO-P2O5 based compounds (x=3,2,1).