Preparation of fibrous nickel powder by precipitation transformation coupled with thermal decomposition

Fibrous particulate precursor was obtained by precipitation transformation in the ternary solution system of ammonium oxalate, nickel chloride and ammonia. The composition and morphology of precursor were characterized by XRD, SEM, IR and DTA/TGA analyses. The results show that the chemical composition and morphology of precursor precipitates at pH=8.4-8.8 are different from those of precursor precipitates at pH=6.0, and the mechanisms of the thermal decomposition of the precursors are different. The effects of various conditions in the process of thermal decomposition, including precursor morphology, atmosphere, temperature and time on the morphology and dispersion degree of obtained nickel powders were studied in detail. The final product inherits the morphology of precursor when the thermal decomposition is conducted under a weakly reducing atmosphere at temperature range of 400-440 °C for 30 min. Fibrous nickel powder can be produced with good dispersion, and its shape changes from smooth, straight and compact fiber into loose and curved fiber with rough surface.