Quantitative relationships between boehmite and γ-alumina crystallite sizes

Nanocrystalline boehmite obtained by limited hydrolysis of aluminum tri-sec-butoxide or aluminum chloride was aged under different conditions before being calcined above the dehydroxylation temperature. When aging was carried out under hydrothermal conditions, the condensation of the structural units obeyed a first-order kinetic law with apparent activation energy of 12.2 kcal/mol. Under dehydroxylation conditions, the boehmite fragmentation is accounted for by a simple power law that links its volume to that of the resulting γ-alumina. The main variable is the volatile compounds content (water for instance) in the fresh sample. In terms of texture, a better organization of the initial nanoparticles in the boehmite means a lower surface area and larger pore diameter in the corresponding γ-alumina.