WANG Peng ¹, LU Xilong ^{1, 2}, CAO Chun’e ¹, CHEN Yunxia ^{1, 2}, SHEN Huarong ¹, ZHANG Xu ¹

(1. Jingdezhen Ceramic University, Jingdezhen 333403, Jiangxi, China; 2. Jingdezhen Key Laboratory of Environmental Ceramic Materials, Jingdezhen 333000, Jiangxi, China)

Abstract:  Alkali borosilicate (ABS) low-temperature frits were prepared by using the traditional melting-water quenching method. The effect of CeO₂ on performances of the ABS lead-free low-temperature frits was studied. XRD, FTIR and thermal expansion analyses were employed to elucidate the underlying reasons for the variation in the performance from the structural point of view. It was found that Ce(BO₂)₃ was gradually precipitated in the frits after the addition 1.48-3.12 mol% CeO₂. Besides Ce(BO₂)₃ crystalline phase, CeO₂ was also observed as the doping concentration reached 3.9 mol%, thus leading to decrease in the initial gloss of the frits. Infrared spectroscopy analysis results indicated that CeO₂ acted as a modifier in the frit and facilitated the transition of [BO₄] to [BO₃]. However, the connectivity of silica-oxygen tetrahedral network in the frit was gradually strengthened with the addition of CeO₂, thus improving the denseness of the frit network and hence effectively reducing the gloss loss of the frits. When 3.12 mol% CeO₂ was introduced into the ABS frit, its wear resistance could be increased, while a high initial gloss was still retained.

Key words: cerium oxide; low-temperature frit; alkali borosilicate system; structure; properties