Patent ID: 6066305
Filing Date: 2000-05-23
Classification: C01B,C01F,C01G,C01P

Abstract:
A process for producing a refractory oxide which comprises (a) reacting liquid water with: (1) at least one metal fluoride reactant, or (2) at least one metal fluoride reactant and at least one metal oxide reactant, to produce either a slurry-blended dispersion which produces a fully-hydrated, cationically-homogeneous and nanostructured colloidal mixture or a solution; (b) removing the liquid from either the colloidal mixture or solution to form a dried product; (c) heating the dried product to produce a solid state metal hydroxyfluoride; (d) further heating the thus-produced metal hydroxyfluoride to a higher temperature at which it chemically decomposes, by heat alone, into a cationically-homogeneous nanostructured solid state metal oxyfluoride; and performing one of the following heating steps: (i) heating the thus-produced metal oxyfluoride to a solid state decomposition-temperature at which it chemically decomposes, by heat alone, into a cationically-homogeneous nanostructured solid state refractory oxide; or, (ii) heating the thus-produced metal oxyfluoride to a molten state decomposition-temperature at which it chemically decomposes, by heat alone, into a cationically-homogeneous nanostructured solid state refractory oxide; or, (iii) heating the thus-produced metal oxyfluoride to a vapor state decomposition-temperature at which it chemically decomposes, by heat alone, into a cationically-homogeneous nanostructured solid state refractory oxide.