Understanding the role of gravity in the crystallization suppression of ZBLAN glass

Torres, Anthony

doi:10.1007/s10853-014-8488-5

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 30 publications

(48 reference statements)

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“…Early microgravity experiments on ZBLAN suggested that crystallization may be suppressed in reduced gravity 12 , thereby widening the working temperature range and hypothetically making it possible to manufacture higher-quality ZBLAN fiber. The increase in crystallization temperature was speculated to arise from a lack of buoyancy-driven convection 13 , though a full mechanistic explanation remains lacking. Nonetheless, multiple commercial efforts are currently pursuing space-based processing of ZBLAN fibers 14 , 15 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microgravity effects on nonequilibrium melt processing of neodymium titanate: thermophysical properties, atomic structure, glass formation and crystallization

Wilke,

Al-Rubkhi,

Koyama

et al. 2024

npj Microgravity

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The relationships between materials processing and structure can vary between terrestrial and reduced gravity environments. As one case study, we compare the nonequilibrium melt processing of a rare-earth titanate, nominally 83TiO2-17Nd2O3, and the structure of its glassy and crystalline products. Density and thermal expansion for the liquid, supercooled liquid, and glass are measured over 300–1850 °C using the Electrostatic Levitation Furnace (ELF) in microgravity, and two replicate density measurements were reproducible to within 0.4%. Cooling rates in ELF are 40–110 °C s−1 lower than those in a terrestrial aerodynamic levitator due to the absence of forced convection. X-ray/neutron total scattering and Raman spectroscopy indicate that glasses processed on Earth and in microgravity exhibit similar atomic structures, with only subtle differences that are consistent with compositional variations of ~2 mol. % Nd2O3. The glass atomic network contains a mixture of corner- and edge-sharing Ti-O polyhedra, and the fraction of edge-sharing arrangements decreases with increasing Nd2O3 content. X-ray tomography and electron microscopy of crystalline products reveal substantial differences in microstructure, grain size, and crystalline phases, which arise from differences in the melt processes.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%