Transformation of Quartz to Cristobalite

The transformation of quartz to cristobalite was studied in the temperature range 1400° to 1650° C. The process which was believed to be a direct one was found to be a consecutive reaction involving an intermediate transition phase. Both Madagascar and Brazilian quartz were used to study the transformation reaction. The reaction rate was found to be much faster for the Madagascar quartz than for the Brazilian quartz, although no difference in their impurity content was found in the spectrographic analysis. An approximate consecutive reaction kinetics was applied and the deviation of the experimentally observed values of the transition phase at a particular temperature from that of the mathematical prediction was noted and is discussed.