Rapid synthesis of the low thermal expansion phase of Al2Mo3O12 via a sol–gel method using polyvinyl alcohol

Aluminum molybdate was successfully synthesized using a simplified PVA assisted sol–gel method resulting in highly crystalline, monophasic (monoclinic P21/a) samples. These materials could readily be obtained at temperatures of 600 and 700 °C after calcining for as little as 15–20 min. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray powder diffraction indicated that even the sample calcined at 600 °C for 20 min was free of impurities and composed of submicron sized particles (~300 nm). Transmission electron microscopy was used to confirm the monophasic character and submicron dimensions of the as-prepared powders. In addition to producing high quality samples, it was also observed that the metal to PVA ratio used during this simplified synthesis, could be used as a control parameter for tailoring the particle sizes of the final product.