The Formation of Perovskite during the Combustion of an Energy-Rich Glycine–Nitrate Precursor

The effect of different regimes of combustion of glycine–nitrate precursors on the formation of perovskite phases (LaMnO(3) and LaCrO(3)) without additional heat treatment was studied. The following three combustion regimes were compared: the traditional solution combustion synthesis (SCS), volume combustion synthesis (VCS) using a powdered precursor, and self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) using a precursor pellet. The products of combustion were studied using a series of physicochemical methods (attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy (ATR FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and thermal analysis). SHS was found to be the most productive regime for the formation of perovskite because of its ability to develop high temperatures in the reaction zone, which led to a reduced content of the thermally stable lanthanum carbonate impurities and to an increased yield and crystallite size of the perovskite phase. The reasons for the better crystallinity and purity of LaCrO(3) as compared with LaMnO(3) is also discussed, namely the low temperatures of the onset of the thermolysis, the fast rate of combustion, and the favorable thermodynamics for the achievement of high temperatures in the reaction zone.