Microstructural investigations on aluminum titanate ceramics

A field activated sintering technique (FAST) was applied to simultaneously sinter and react sol-gel amorphous, nano-sized, powders to form Al/sub 2/TiO/sub 5/. Phase evolution by FAST was investigated by bright field contrast together with TEM imaging (HREM). A synergistic effect of increased homogeneity in the initial sol-gel powders and external field application resulted in enhanced densification and reaction to form the final Al/sub 2/TiO/sub 5/ product.