Preparation and characterization of zinc hydroxide carbonate and porous zinc oxide particles

A simple urea aqueous solution process at low temperature (85 °C) was employed for the preparation of zinc hydroxide carbonate from zinc nitrate. The influence of different additives on the final particle morphology was studied. Porous spherical particles in the shape of chrysanthemums with an average size of 4 μm and a surface area of 16 m2/g were obtained in the presence of poly-vinyl pyrrolidone (PVP-K30). After heat treatment ZnO particles were formed that preserved the size and shape of the hydrozincite precursor. The morphology and crystallinity of the solids obtained before and after the heat treatment were characterized by FE-SEM, XRD, FTIR, BET and TG methods.