International Science Community Association Research Journal of Chemical Sciences 2231 - 606X 5 2 2015 February 18 The Effect of Spinel formation in the Ceramic Welding Fluxes on the Properties of Molten Slag 23 31 EN Okechukwu R.I. 1 Department of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State, NIGERIA Iwuchukwu A.C. 2 Anuforo H.U. 3 Kumar D.Prem 1 Department of Chemistry, Sri Krishnadevaraya University, Anantapur–515 003, A.P., INDIA PraveenKumar A. 2 Reddy P.Raveendra 3 Yusuf A.J. 1 1 Department of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, NIGERIA Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, NIGERIA Galadima A. 2 Garba 3 Z.N. 4 Nasir I. 5 Nirmala Baby 1 Department of Science and Humanities, Christian College of Engineering and Technology, Oddanchatram, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, INDIA Manjula P. 2 Head, Department of Chemistry, APA College for Women, Palani, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, INDIA Manimegalai S. 3 Department of Chemistry, APA College of Arts and Culture, Palani Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, INDIA ArthurRomuald Cakpo 1 Laboratoire de Chimie Inorganique et de l’Environnement (LaCIE), Faculté des Sciences et Techniques (FAST), Université d’Abomey -Calavi BP : 4521 Cotonou, République du BENIN Etienne Sagbo1 2 Laboratoire d’Hydrologie Appliquée (LHA), Université d’Abomey- Calavi, République du BENIN Daouda Mama 3 Laboratoire d’Etude et de Recherche en Chimie Appliquée (LERCA), Ecole polytechnique d’Abomey- Calavi (EPAC), Université etMohamedM. Soumanou 4 d’Abomey- Calavi, République du BENIN Davidenko O.A. 1 Chemical Department, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, 01601 Kyiv, UKRAINE SokolskyV. E. 2 The E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 03680 Kyiv, UKRAINE LisnyakV. V. 3 RoikO. S. 4 Goncharov I.A. 5 GalinichV. I. 6 > Research Paper 2015 1 11 2015 February 18 The magnesia- and alumina-based binary and ternary mixtures of the oxides as well as quaternary oxide-fluoride mixtures, which contain MgO and Al, can form the spinel MgAl4 phase at high temperature treatment.Thespinel phase formation and related issues were examined for these mixtures and commercial ceramic welding fluxes. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), high temperature X-ray diffraction (HT-XRD), and gravimetry analysis were used to examine the phase composition of slags. For the major of the studied compositions, scanning electron microscopy (SEM)showsthe formation of the prismatic microcrystallites of ca. 10-35 mkm. The energy dispersive X-ray(EDX) analysisconfirmsthat pyramid-shaped prismatic crystals have MgAl spinel stoichiometry. The spinel crystallites are insoluble in the slags, according to the HT-XRD and PXRD data, and so the contribution of a part of the slag components that forming the spinel should be excluded at the estimation of characteristics of the slag melts. Based on this fact, it was proposed to quantify the spinel phase formed in the molten slag. Three convenient analytical techniques were proposed for the accurate determination of the weight and the volume fractions of the spinel phase in the slags. Two of these techniques are based on the internal standard method, which is applied in the framework of the quantitative PXRD analysis. The third technique is originated from the gravimetric analysis of the products of the solid slags etching that was conducted applying strong acids. The data obtained by the methods are sufficiently agrees with each other. The results of the spinel quantification were used to estimate the molten slag basicity and viscosity. Copyright@ International Science Community Association