Honeycomb-shaped cordierite catalyst carrier and method for producing the same

Abstract

A cordierite honeycomb body is produced by forming a cordierite material including kaoline into a honeycomb shape and sintering it. The kaoline included in the cordierite material is at least partly composed of kaolinite having a Hinckley crystallinity index of 0.5 or more thereby having a less amorphous phase portion in a kaolinite particle. Therefore, when the cordierite material is sintered, the number of micropores generated in the cordierite is decreased due to the less amorphous phase portion in the kaolinite particles. As a result, density of the cordierite is increased without increasing a C.T.E. thereof. Thus, the cordierite honeycomb body has sufficient strength even when thickness of a cell wall thereof is decreased.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.