Molten salt synthesis of alkaline earth titanates, zirconates and their solid solutions

Claim 1

A process for producing a product selected from the group consisting of an alkaline earth titanate, an alkaline earth zirconate, and an alkaline earth titanate zirconate wherein the alkaline earth component is selected from the group consisting of barium, strontium and mixtures thereof, which consists essentially of providing a particulate first reactant selected from the group consisting of TiO 2 , ZrO 2 and mixtures thereof in at least stoichiometric amount or particulate precursor therefor, providing a particulate second reactant which is an alkaline earth oxide selected from the group consisting of BaO, SrO, and mixtures thereof in at least stoichiometric amount or particulate precursor therefor, providing an alkali metal hydroxide selected from the group consisting of sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide and mixtures thereof, forming a mixture of said reactants or precursors therefor and said hydroxide solvent, said hydroxide solvent being used in an amount of at least about 20% by weight of the total amount of said reactants and said hydroxide solvent, heating said mixture to a reaction temperature at least sufficient to melt said hydroxide solvent and form said product, each said precursor decomposing completely at or below said reaction temperature to form said oxide and by-product gas, said hydroxide solvent in molten form being a solvent for said reactants, maintaining said reaction temperature dissolving and reacting said reactants in said molten solvent and precipitating said product, recovering said precipitated product by dissolving said hydroxide solvent and separating said precipitated product from the resulting solution.