Observing and Modeling the Sequential Pairwise Reactions that Drive Solid-State Ceramic Synthesis
Akira Miura, Christopher J. Bartel, Yosuke Goto, Yoshikazu Mizuguchi, Chikako Moriyoshi, Yoshihiro Kuroiwa, Yongming Wang, Toshie Yaguchi, Manabu Shirai, Masanori Nagao, Nataly Carolina Rosero-Navarro, Kiyoharu Tadanaga, Gerbrand Ceder, Wenhao Sun
Advanced Materials, Volume33, Issue24, (2021): https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202100312
Solid-state synthesis from powder precursors is the primary processing route to advanced multicomponent ceramic materials. Designing reaction conditions and precursors for ceramic synthesis can be a laborious, trial-and-error process, as heterogeneous mixtures of precursors often evolve through a complicated series of reaction intermediates. Here, ab initio thermodynamics is used to model which pair of precursors has the most reactive interface, enabling the understanding and anticipation of which non-equilibrium intermediates form in the early stages of a solid-state reaction. In situ X-ray diffraction and in situ electron microscopy are then used to observe how these initial intermediates influence phase evolution in the synthesis of the classic high-temperature superconductor YBa2Cu3O6+x (YBCO). The model developed herein rationalizes how the replacement of the traditional BaCO3 precursor with BaO2 redirects phase evolution through a low-temperature eutectic melt, facilitating the formation of YBCO in 30 min instead of 12+ h. Precursor selection plays an important role in tuning the thermodynamics of interfacial reactions and emerges as an important design parameter in planning kinetically favorable synthesis pathways to complex ceramic materials.