Role of alkali carbonate and salt in topochemical synthesis of K1/2Na1/2NbO3 and NaNbO3 templates

Abstract

Since the properties of lead-free piezoelectric materials have thus far failed to meet those of lead-based materials, either chemical doping or morphological texturing should be employed to improve the piezoelectric properties of lead-free piezoelectric ceramics. The goal of this study was to synthesize plate-like K1/2Na1/2NbO3 and NaNbO3 particles, which are the most favorable templates for morphological texturing of K1/2Na1/2NbO3 ceramics. To achieve this goal, Bi2.5Na3.5Nb5O18 precursors in a plate-like shape were first synthesized and subsequently converted into K1/2Na1/2NbO3 or NaNbO3 particles that retain the morphology of Bi2.5Na3.5Nb5O18. In this study, we found that sodium or potassium carbonate does not play a major role in converting the Bi2.5Na3.5Nb5O18 precursor to K1/2Na1/2NbO3 or NaNbO3, on the contrary to previous reports; however, the salt contributes to the conversion reaction. All synthesis processes have been performed via a molten salt method, and scanning electron microscopy, scanning probe microscopy, and inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy were used to characterize the synthesized K1/2Na1/2NbO3 or NaNbO3 templates.