Contactless Density Measurement of Liquid Nd‐Doped 50%CaO–50%Al2O3

Abstract

The density of neodymium‐doped calcium aluminate (<1 mol% Nd2O3·50% CaO·50% Al2O3) liquid was measured over a wide temperature range using an electrostatic levitation furnace. The density was obtained using an UV‐based imaging technique that allowed excellent illumination throughout all phases of processing, including elevated temperatures. Over the 1560–2000 K temperature range, the density could be expressed as ρ(T) = 2.83 × 103– 0.21(T–Tm) (kg·m−3) (±2%) with Tm= 1878 K, which yielded a volume coefficient of thermal expansion α(T) = 7.5 × 10−5 K−1.