Preparation of spherical particles of Li2TiO3 (with diameters below 100 μm) by sol–gel process

Medium sized spherical particles of Li2TiO3 (with diameters below 100 μm) can be prepared from peroxy lithium titanate solution (stabilized with citric acid) by a modified INCT (Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology) variant of the sol–gel process. The process consists of the following main steps: (I) formation of aqueous phase emulsion in 2-ethylhexanol-1; (II) gelation of emulsion drops by extraction of water with partially dehydrated EH; (III) filtration and washing with carbon tetrachloride or acetone; (IV) non-destructive thermal treatment. The medium size particles can be used for increasing pebble bed density by infiltration them into bed larger spheres (1 mm diameter). The tritium release from sol–gel process preparation of Li2TiO3 microspheres was found very close to that observed for other traditional material however, the new process is more efficient than other processes because of the morphology of the sintered specimens.