MECHANOCHEMICAL SYNTHESIS OF CADMIUM-DOPED TIN OXIDE NANOPARTICLES

Abstract

The cadmium-doped SnO 2 nanoparticles have been successfully prepared by a simple mechanochemical reaction and subsequent thermal treatment. The samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). Thermal treatment of the as-milled powder at 700°C for 2 h resulted in the formation of Cd-SnO 2 nanoparticles with an average crystal size of 13 nm, varying with the calcination temperature. The effect of doped cadmium on the crystal size of the nanoparticles was investigated. The lattice parameter (c) of the Cd-SnO 2 nanoparticles, lower than that of pure SnO 2, decreased with increasing amount of doped cadmium. The apparent activation energy of Cd-SnO 2 nanocrystal growth during calcination of the precursor was calculated to be 70.8 kJ/mol. The mechanochemical method is a novel, cheap and convenient technique especially suitable for large-scale synthesis of nanosized materials.