Synthesis of nanopyroaurite using bauxite-washing residues as low cost starting material

Abstract

In this work, nanopyroaurite was successfully obtained from bauxite-mining residues via co-precipitation and hydrothermal synthesis. The effect of crystallization time and temperature on the formation of layered-type material were investigated. The product was characterized by XRD, FT-IR, Raman spectroscopy and HR-TEM with EDS analysis. The results revealed that bauxite residues could be transformed into aggregate nanoparticles with nanosizes around 50–60 nm, confirming the residues as raw material for the synthesis of nanomaterial.