Cu-Ni oxides obtained by laser and thermal processing of mixed salts

This work presents new results on Cu-Ni oxides obtained by IR thermochemical laser processing of controlled mixtures of metal salts. The CuO and NiO oxides were characterized by several analytical methods, such as x-ray photoelectron Spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction and IR spectrometry. Compared with the reaction products obtained in classical thermal decomposition, as well as with mixtures of the respective oxides, the laser-produced oxides exhibited peculiarities: different oxide fractions and smaller dimensions of crystallites were obtained in relation to the classical treatment, while the chemical composition was characterized by the presence of minority phases of metal suboxides.