Glass containing chromium is a promising material for use in various modern fields of application (laser technology, optoelectronic devices, and luminescent resources). Chromium oxides are well-known nucleating agents that can cause crystallization. One of the most commonly observed crystalline phases in silicate glasses is cristobalite, which lowers their mechanical strength, leading to the destruction of the material. The objective of this investigation was to study in detail the crystallization of cristobalite in sodium borosilicate glass in the presence of 2 mol% Cr2O3, depending on the thermal history of the glass. The glass was studied using XRD, SEM, EPR, FTIR-spectroscopy, XPS, and solid-state NMR. Eskolaite, α-Cr2O3, which had crystallized in this glass, stimulated the bulk crystallization of cristobalite at 550 °C after isothermally treating it for 72 h, due to the phase-separated structure of the glass with its interpenetrating phase morphology. Polytypism, resulting in the incorporation of alkalis into the cristobalite structure, was observed. Cr2O3 causes the catalytic crystallization of cristobalite at an extremely low temperature, which is at lower concentrations and temperatures than in glass containing Fe2O3 with a similar composition. The crystal growth rate and the incubation time for the crystallization of cristobalite were roughly estimated.
Keywords: Cr2O3; borosilicate glass; cristobalite; crystallization; eskolaite; phase separation; polytypism.