Low-temperature Synthesis of Single Phase Intermetallic NiZn Bulk Nanopowder in Molten LiCl-KCl with CaH2 Reducing Agent

In general. ZnO is difficult to reduce due to the strong oxygen affinity of Zn, preventing the formation of pure Intermetallic NiZn phase under mild conditions. The present study found that CaH2 reducing agent allowed the low temperature synthesis of single phase intermetallic NiZn bulk nanopowder (BET surface area = 6.6 m(2)/g, crystallite size = 26.9 nm) from a precursor of Ni, ZnO, and Ni3ZnC in molten LiCl-KCl at temperatures as low as 360 degrees C. Single phase NiZn was obtained in the inert gas flow condition, so CaH2 in molten salts was considered to act as a superior reducing agent to prepare pure intermetallic nanopowders. SEM revealed that the obtained powder consisted of spherical particles of nanometer sizes and small particles were interconnected to form a porous structure. SEM-EDX and XPS of the residues on the samples confirmed that any impurity species originating from LiCl, KCl and CaH2 were efficiently washed out by post-rinsing treatments.