A Study On The Solubility Limit Of Nd2O3 In Tho2-Ndo1.5 Solid Solution

Thorium dioxide dissolves considerable amounts of rare earth oxides forming FCC fluorite-type solid solution. In the present study a series of solid solutions containing NdO1.5 in ThO2 were prepared by co-precipitation method. These solid solutions were characterized for their composition by standard wet-chemical analysis. Their bulk and theoretical densities were determined by immersion and X-ray techniques respectively. The extent of solubility of NdO1.5 in ThO2 matrix was determined using powder x-ray diffraction at 1473 K. The measured solubility of NdO1.5 was found to be in the range 45.7 to 46.2 mol%.