Synthesis of ThO2nanostructures through a hydrothermal approach: influence of hexamethylenetetramine (HMTA) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)

Abstract

In this work, ThO2 nanostructures with various morphologies are synthesized through a hydrothermal approach. The influences of some experimental parameters, such as the concentration of hexamethylenetetramine (HMTA), the amount of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and the hydrothermal temperature, on the synthesis and morphologies of ThO2 nanostructures were systematically investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The results showed that ThO2 nanospheres with a particle size of 59 +/- 9 nm could be synthesized at a molar ratio of Th4+/HMTA of 0.3 under the reaction temperature of 100 degrees C. Adding SDS could adjust the diameter of ThO2 nanospheres from 240 to 71 nm while keeping other parameters constant. Furthermore, nanoparticles and the aggregated nanostructures of ThO2 could be obtained by varying the concentration of HMTA and the amount of SDS. The possible formation mechanism of various ThO2 nanostructures was also proposed.