Pure tetragonal zirconia nanosheets were successfully prepared by modified Pechini method. In this approach, ZrOCl 2 .6H 2 O, tri ethanol amine (TEA) and citric acid (CA) were used as the source of Zr 4+ , the chelating and polymerization agent, respectively. The effects of heat treatment and TEA:CA: Zr 4+ ratios on the structure, morphology and zirconia particle size were investigated.The microstructure of the products was characterized by X-ray diffractometry (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) analysis. The zirconia nanosheets exhibit photoluminescence at room temperature with a broad emission in the blue region of the visible spectrum. Finally, the effect of calcination temperature on the photocatalyst properties of nanosheets was investigated.

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