Chalcogenide glasses and glass-ceramics present a high interest for the production of thermal imaging lenses transparent in the 3-5 μm and 8-12 μm windows. However, chalcogenide glasses are conventionally synthesized in sealed silica ampoules which have two major drawbacks. First, the low thermal conductivity of silica limits the sample dimensions and second the silica tubes employed are single use and expensive, and represent up to 30% of the final cost of the material. The present work therefore addresses the development of innovative synthesis methods for chalcogenide glass and glass-ceramics that can present an alternative to the silica tube route. The method investigated involves melting the raw starting elements in reusable silica containers. This method is suitable for the synthesis of stable chalcogenide glasses compositions such as GeSe₄ but uncontrolled crystallization and homogenization problems are experienced for less stable compositions. The second approach involves preparation of amorphous chalcogenide powders by ball milling of raw elements. This mechanosynthesis step is followed by consolidation of the resulting powders to produce bulk glasses. Hot Uniaxial Pressing is suitable for compositions stable against crystallization. However, uncontrolled crystallization occurs for the unstable 80GeSe₂-20Ga₂Se₃ glass composition. In contrast consolidation through Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) allows production of bulk glasses in a short duration at relatively low temperatures and is appropriate for the synthesis of unstable glasses. A sintering stage of only 2 min at 390°C is shown to be sufficient to obtain infrared transparent 80GeSe₂-20Ga₂Se₃ bulk glasses. This method enables the production of lenses with a 4-fold increase in diameter in comparison to those obtained by melt/quenching technique. Moreover, increasing the SPS treatment duration yielded infrared transparent glass-ceramics with enhanced mechanical properties. This innovative synthesis method combining mechanosynthesis and SPS has been patented in the framework if this study. The controlled etching of 80GeSe₂-20Ga₂Se₃ glass-ceramics in acid solution yields nanoporous materials with enhanced surface area. The porous layer created on the surface of the glass-ceramic is shown to play the role of anti-reflection coating and increase the optical transmission in the infrared range by up to 10%. These materials may have potential for the production of sensors with increased sensitivity in the infrared. The influence of indium and lead addition on the thermal and optical properties of the 80GeSe₂-20Ga₂Se₃ glass has also been assessed. Increased In or Pb contents tend to decrease the Tg of the glasses and shift the optical band gap toward higher wavelengths. A systematic ceramization study emphasizes the difficulty of controlling the crystallization for glasses in the systems GeSe₂-Ga₂Se₃-In₂Se₃ and GeSe₂-Ga₂Se₃-PbSe. No crystallization of the In₂Se₃ and PbSe crystalline phase was obtained. Finally, the possibility of producing rare-earth doped 80GeSe₂-20Ga₂Se₃ glass-ceramics transparent in the infrared region up to 16 μm is demonstrated. Enhanced photoluminescence intensity and reduced radiative lifetimes are observed with increased crystallinity in these materials.

The application efficiency of the perovskites may be related to some factors, among them, the synthesis method and the metal type. In this work, a study of the synthesis methods and metal type used in the preparation of perovskites oxides of the formula LaBO3 (B = Ni or Mn) was performed. The compared methods were mechanosynthesis and modified proteic method using the soy protein as a chelating agent. The materials were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TG/DTG), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), UV-Vis spectrophotometry, X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and N2 adsorption at 77 K. The samples which were synthesized by the modified proteic method had differences in intensities and wavenumbers for bands related to metal-ligand bonds identified by the FTIR analysis. This technique evidenced the metal-oxygen bonds in both methods. For the modified proteic method, spectrophotometry in the UV-Vis region showed the band that confirms the metal-ligand coordination, for both Mn2+ and Ni2+ in the aqueous system. XRD analysis indicated single-phase perovskite formation only for the LaMnO3 materials synthesized by the modified protein method. The calcination at 900°C showed better crystallinity. The N2 adsorption at 77 K showed that the modified proteic method formed perovskites with larger specific surface areas than mechanosynthesis. Selected samples were applied as adsorbents in the removal of congo red dye in aqueous solution. Thus, by maintaining the metal and varying the synthesis method, the perovskites synthesized by mechanosynthesis presented higher adsorption efficiency than those synthesized by the modified proteic method. By varying the metal, the manganese-based samples exhibited higher adsorption efficiency. Kinetic studies showed that the pseudo-second order model fitted better to the experimental data and exhibiting R2 values closer to the unit. FTIR analysis of the materials after the tests proved that there was adsorption. TG/DTG curves showed the calcination temperature suitable for the decomposition of the dye adsorbed on the perovskite, in order to recover the adsorbent. Finally, XRD analysis showed that the perovskite structure resisted the conditions of the adsorption assays and recovery process. / A eficiência da aplicação dos óxidos tipo perovskita pode estar relacionada a fatores como método de síntese e tipo de metal presente na estrutura do material. Neste trabalho, foi realizado o estudo do efeito do método de síntese e do tipo de metal na formação de perovskitas tipo LaBO3 (B = Ni ou Mn). Os métodos comparados foram mecanossíntese e método proteico modificado usando a proteína da soja como agente quelante. Os materiais foram caracterizados por análise termogravimétrica (TG/DTG), espectroscopia na região do infravermelho com transformada de Fourier (FTIR), espectrofotometria na região do UV-Vis, difratometria de raios X (DRX) e adsorção de N2 a 77 K. Para as amostras sintetizadas pelo método proteico modificado, as análises de FTIR identificaram diferenças nas intensidades e nos números de onda para as bandas referentes às ligações metal-ligante. Essa técnica evidenciou as ligações entre metal e oxigênio em ambos os métodos. Para o método proteico modificado, a espectrofotometria na região do UV-Vis mostrou a banda que confirma a coordenação metal-ligante, tanto para Mn2+ quanto para Ni2+ nos sistemas aquosos. As análises de DRX indicaram a fase perovskita monofásica apenas para os materiais LaMnO3 sintetizados pelo método proteico modificado. Os materiais calcinados a 900ºC apresentaram maiores cristalinidades. As análises de adsorção de N2 a 77 K mostraram que o método proteico modificado formou perovskitas com maiores áreas superficiais em relação à mecanossíntese. Amostras selecionadas foram aplicadas como adsorventes na remoção do corante vermelho congo em solução aquosa. Desse modo, mantendo o metal e variando o método de síntese, as perovskitas sintetizadas por mecanossíntese exibiram maior eficiência de adsorção do que as sintetizadas pelo método proteico modificado. Variando o metal, as amostras à base de manganês exibiram maior eficiência na adsorção. Estudos cinéticos mostraram que o modelo de pseudo-segunda ordem se ajustou melhor aos dados experimentais, exibindo valores de R2 mais próximos da unidade. As análises de FTIR dos materiais após os testes comprovaram que houve adsorção. As curvas de TG/DTG mostraram a temperatura de calcinação adequada para decomposição do corante adsorvido na perovskita, a fim de recuperar o adsorvente. Por fim, a análise de DRX mostrou que a estrutura perovskita resistiu às condições dos ensaios de adsorção e do processo de recuperação. / São Cristóvão, SE