A novel method for the preparation of Bi4Ti3O12 nanoparticles in w/o microemulsion

Nanometer-sized Bi4Ti3O12 particles have been prepared by chemical reaction of bismuth nitrate pentahydrate, titanium sulfate and ammonia solution in a reverse microemulsion system consisting of water, OP (P-octyl polyethylene glycol phenylether, non-ionic surfactant), n-butanol (co-surfactant), and cyclohexane (oil). Precursor hydroxides precipitated in the droplets of water-in-oil (w/o) microemulsion were calcined at 800 °C for 4 h to form Bi4Ti3O12 nanoparticles. The samples were investigated with X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), fourier transform infrared spectrophotometer (FT-IR) and ultraviolet visible spectrophotometer (UV–vis). It was found that the as-prepared Bi4Ti3O12 nanoparticles had small particle sizes (35 nm), high crystallinity, narrow size distributions and strong light absorption properties not only in the ultraviolet light but also in the visible light region.