Preparation and Characterization of Barium Titanate (BaTiO3) Nano-Powders by Pechini Sol-Gel Method

In this work, barium titanate (BaTiO3) powders were synthesized via two Pechini sol-gel processes using citric acid and polyethylene glycol-6000 as chelating agents. Attempts had been made to understand the thermal behavior of the polymeric intermediates with the help of thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DTG-DSC) thermograms. The structural coordination of as-prepared polymeric intermediates was investigated by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis. The phase and structure of the powders calcined at different temperatures were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM). Preparation of the polymeric precursors can influence the mechanism of the BaTiO3 synthesis. The formed intermediate phase BaCO3 appears in gel-2 system, and BaCO3 phase does not disappear at 720 degrees C. The formed intermediate phases of gel-1 differ from that of gel-2. The intermediate phases of gel-1 are anatase TiO2 and rutile TiO2, and the intermediate phase BaCO3 doesn't appear in gel-1system. When the powders are calcined at 720 degrees C, the particles of gel-1 system are agglomerated spheres with about 25 nm, but the particles of gel-2 system have varied shapes.