A method for improving the thermo-mechanical properties of an aluminum-titanate composite, the composite including at least one of strontium-feldspar, mullite, cordierite, or a combination thereof, including: combining a glass source and an aluminum-titanate source into a batch composition; and firing the combined batch composite composition to produce the aluminum-titanate composite. Another method for improving the thermo-mechanical properties of the composite dips a fired composite article into phosphoric acid, and then anneal the dipped composite article. The resulting composites have a thin glass film situated between the ceramic granules of the composite, which can arrest microcrack propagation.