THE INFLUENCE OF PRECURSORS ON THE MORPHO-STRUCTURE OF ZINC OXIDE

Abstract

This paper presents the influence of different precursors on the morphostructure of zinc oxide nanoparticles used for the impregnation of polystyrene (PES) filters. Zinc oxide nanoparticles were synthesized by a microwave and ultrasound-assisted hydrolytic method using different precursors (Zn(NO3)2-6H2O; ZnSO4-7H2O; and Zn(CH3COO)2-2H2O) and sodium hydroxide as a nucleophilic agent. The resulting powders were calcined at 550 °C for 2 hours. Using the Williamson-Hall method for XRD analysis, the crystalline structure of the zinc oxide nanoparticles was determined, with average sizes of 40 nm (ZnO_AZ_US_MAE), 35.6 nm (ZnO_SU_US_MAE) and 36.4 nm (ZnO_AC_US_MAE). Morphological analysis by SEM revealed different shapes (polyhedral and irregular plates) with sizes ranging from 47 nm to 127 nm for the powder obtained from the zinc nitrate precursor, 43 nm to 63 nm for the powder prepared from the zinc sulfate precursor, and sizes ranging from 42 nm to 89 nm for the zinc acetate precursor. ATR FTIR spectroscopy was used to confirm the presence of Zn-O bonds. In addition, BET analysis showed that among the three Ipowders synthesized using different precursors, ZnO_SU_US_MAE had the highest surface area with a value of 16.4381 ± 0.0146 m²/g and an average particle size of 63.4671 nm, which was confirmed by SEM analysis.