Sol-hydrothermal synthesis and characterization of lead zirconate titanate fine particles

A novel sol-hydrothermal route to prepare lead zirconate titanate (PZT) fine particles is presented, which combined the conventional sol–gel process and the hydrothermal method. The effects of experimental parameters including sol/(sol + water) ratio, reaction temperature and reaction time on the product powders were investigated. The prepared PZT powders were characterized by XRD, SEM/EDS, and Raman techniques. The results indicated that the optimal synthesis conditions were sol/(sol + water) = 20%, 200 °C, 8 h. The obtained powders with an average particle size of 700 nm, were phase pure perovskite PZT with cubic-shaped morphology, and the reaction temperature was as low as 150 °C, which was comparatively lower than that synthesized by the normal sol–gel route. It was supposed that the sol precursor and hydrothermal environment played important roles in the formation of the PZT fine powders at low temperature and low mineralizer concentration.

This figure shows the specific morphologies of the PZT powders synthesized at 200 °C for 16 h with different sol/(sol + water) ratios. The cubic-shaped PT particles (sizes range 500–800 nm, Fig. a) are synthesized when the sol/(sol + water) ratio is 5%. The mean sizes of the PZT particles with cubic-shaped morphologies decrease gradually with the increasing of the sol/(sol + water) ratio (Figs. b, c and d). Some aciculas among the cubic-shaped particles appear when the sol/(sol + water) ratio is 25% (Fig. e). Only amorphous materials can be found in Fig. f.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slideHighlight
► We used a novel sol-hydrothermal process to prepare the PZT particle.
► The optimum reaction parameters were investigated in our work.
► Well crystallized PZT particles with size of about 700 nm are prepared.