The effect of hydrolysis duration on the phase composition, texture, aggregation and agglomeration of ZrO2 nanoparticles

Abstract

In this work, a number of ZrO 2 • nH 2 O and ZrO 2 samples were synthesized by direct precipitation and hydrolysis with different duration (36 and 61 h) followed by neutralization and thermal treatment. The prepared samples were analyzed using DT-TGA, PXRD, N 2 physisorption and LD methods. The dependence of the size of crystallites and secondary particles, phase composition, texture, and particle morphology on the amount of zirconium hydrolyzed to form m-ZrO 2 is shown. The possibility of regulating the phase composition of ZrO 2 has been established while maintaining the specific surface area (110 -120 m 2 /g), as well as creating a hierarchical system of micro-mesopores. The mechanism of the ZrO 2 • nH 2 O formation during hydrolysis and precipitation is considered. The size of the critical nucleus is estimated (1.5 -2 nm).