Aluminum titanate compositions, ceramic articles comprising same, and methods of manufacturing same

A method of manufacturing a ceramic article, comprising:

• providing an inorganic batch composition comprising a silicon containing source, an aluminum containing source, a titanium containing source, a magnesium containing source, a rare earth containing source and a zirconium containing source;
• mixing the inorganic batch composition together with one or more processing aid selected from the group consisting of a plasticizer, lubricant, binder, pore former, and solvent, to form a plasticized ceramic precursor batch composition;
• shaping the plasticized ceramic precursor batch composition into a green body;
• and
• firing the green body under conditions effective to convert the green body into a ceramic article comprising:
• a tialite phase;
• at least one silicate phase;
• at least 1 wt % MgO;
• at least 0.1 wt % rare earth oxide;
• and
• at least 0.1 wt % ZrO2,
• wherein metal oxide constituents of the article satisfy at least one of the relations
• 3(mole % TiO2)/(100+mole % Al2O3)<1.0 and
• [2(mole % Al2O3)+3(mole % MgO)]/110>1.0,
• where mole % TiO2=100[(moles TiO2)/(moles TiO2+moles Al2O3+moles MgO+moles ZrO2)], mole % Al2O3=100[(moles Al2O3)/(moles TiO2+moles Al2O3+moles MgO+moles ZrO2)], and mole % MgO=100[(moles MgO)/(moles TiO2+moles Al2O3+moles MgO+moles ZrO2)],
• wherein the sum of ZrO2 and the rare earth oxide is greater than 0.5 wt %, and
• wherein the amount of Fe2O3 is less than 0.5 wt %.