Preparation of Li4SiO4 pebbles with high strength and inhibited lithium volatilization via lithium alginate

The tritium breeder's primary research focus is to inhibit lithium's volatilization during sintering and improve the mechanical properties of tritium breeder ceramic pebbles. In this study, ceramic pebbles were prepared by wet method using lithium alginate as a lithium supplement and polyvinyl alcohol. The effects of different contents of lithium alginate (LA) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) on ceramic pebbles were systematically studied. The results show that the lithium content in Li4SiO4 pebbles after sintering can be increased to 27.6wt% by adding 3wt% lithium alginate, which effectively inhibits the volatilization of lithium. In addition, when the sintering temperature is 1000celcius and the duration is 6 h, the crush load of ceramic pebbles can be increased to 50.9 N, and the density can reach 2.01 g/cm3. The above results indicate that Li4SiO4 ceramic pebbles rich in lithium, which can meet the demand for tritium breeding ceramics, can be prepared by adding LA.