On the development of two characteristically different crystal morphology in SiO(2)-MgO-Al (2)O (3)-K (2)O-B (2)O (3)-F glass-ceramic system.

The present work demonstrates how crystals with two different characteristic morphologies can be formed in SiO(2)-MgO-Al(2)O(3)-K(2)O-B(2)O(3)-F glass-ceramic system by adopting two sets of heat treatment experiments. In our study, single stage heat treatment experiments were performed at 1,000 degrees C for varying holding time of 8-24 h with 4 h time interval and as a function of temperature in the range of 1,000-1,120 degrees C with 40 degrees C temperature interval. The constant heating rate of 10 degrees C/min was employed for both sets of experiments. The microstructural changes were investigated using Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), SEM-EDS and XRD. For temperature variation batches, the microstructure is characterized by interlocked, randomly oriented mica plates ('house-of-cards' morphology). An important and new observation of complex crystal morphology is made in the samples heat treated at 1,000 degrees C for varying holding times. Such morphology appears to be the results of composite spherulitic-dendritic like growth of mica rods radiating from a central nucleus. The possible mechanism for such characteristic crystal growth morphology is discussed with reference to a nucleation-growth kinetics based model. The activation energy for crystal nucleation and Avrami index are computed to be 388 kJ/mol and 1.3 respectively, assuming Johnson-Mehl-Avrami model of crystallization. Another important result is that a maximum of around 70% of spherulitic-dendritic like crystal morphology can be obtained after heat treatment at 1,000 degrees C for 24 h, while a lower amount (approximately 58%) of interlocked plate like mica crystals is formed after heat treatment at 1,040 degrees C for 4 h.