High‐efficiency mechanochemical synthesis of Strontium carbonate nanopowder from Celestite

Abstract

AbstractIn this study, the conversion of Celestite to SrCO3 was studied by wet mechanochemical synthesis in a high‐energy ball mill and treatment with Na2CO3. For this purpose, solid strontium carbonate and soluble Na2SO4 were obtained after wet milling of Celestite powder and sodium carbonate. The solid phase was washed with water at room temperature by filter pressing. X‐Ray diffraction patterns showed that the SrCO3 nanopowder was synthesized and conversion boosted with increasing the milling time up to 8 hours Also, Rietveld refinement analysis was used to calculate the fraction of SrCO3 as well as structural properties of synthesized samples. It was found that initial Celestite could be converted to strontium carbonate with a purity more than 98% using high‐energy milling without simultaneous heating. The optimum milling time was determined as 4 hours resulting in formation of nanopowders with an average particle size around 90 nm. Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE‐SEM), clearly showed the nanoscale structure of the synthesized powders.