Phase transformations of high-purity PbI2 nanoparticles synthesized from lead-acid accumulator anodes

High-purity hexagonal lead iodide nanoparticles have been synthesized from a depleted sealed lead acid battery anode. The synthesized product was found to consist of the rare 6R polytype form of PbI2 that is thought to have good potential in photovoltaic applications. We investigate the effects of annealing time and post-melting temperature on the structure and optical properties using 1.5418 Å CuKα radiation. Photoluminescence measurements were done under 150 W/221 nm wavelength xenon excitation. Phase transformation was observed through XRD peaks when annealing time increased from 0.5–5 h. The nanoparticle grain size and inter-planar distance appeared to be independent of annealing time. PL measurements show three broad peaks in a range of 400 nm to 700 nm that are attributed to excitonic, donor–acceptor pair and luminescence bands from the deep levels.