In-situ crystallization studies of gels in the ZrO<SUB>2</SUB>-SiO<SUB>2</SUB> system

The in-situ investigation of amorphous gels is important in understanding the evolution of structures and the influence of environmental factors on crystallization. In this paper, the ZrO<SUB>2</SUB>-SiO<SUB>2</SUB> system has been studied in-situ under electron beam heating. The study reveals that both the size of the ZrO<SUB>2</SUB> particles and the presence of hydroxyl ions influence the nature of the crystalline phase of the ZrO<SUB>2</SUB> particles formed