Effect of Mineralizers on the Preparation and Chromatic Properties of Cerium/Praseodymium Co-doped Yellow Ceramic Pigments
Abstract
To address the shortcomings of traditional Pr-ZrSiO4 yellow ceramic pigments, including their cool tone, empirical mineralizer selection, and inefficiencies in energy consumption and yield, this study synthesized (Ce, Pr)-ZrSiO4 pigments using a mechanochemical-assisted molten salt method at 900 ℃. Three fluoride mineralizers (LiF, MgF2, NaF) were systematically compared. Results show NaF exhibited optimal mineralization and the ability to promote chromogenic development due to the similar ionic radii of Na+ and Pr3+, enabling a Pr3+-Na+ co-occupancy mechanism that effectively compensates for the charge imbalance from Pr3+ substituting for Zr4+, thereby increasing the content of the chromogenic Pr4+ species. With an optimized F/Zr molar ratio of 0.3, a well-crystallized warm-yellow pigment was obtained (L* = 80.29, a* = 5.42, b* = 68.39). This research not only optimized the color performance of (Ce, Pr)-ZrSiO4 pigments but also revealed the underlying mechanism of Pr3+-Na+ co-occupancy, providing an important theoretical basis and an optimized process scheme for the preparation of this type of traditional pigment.