Produção, dispersão e consolidação de zircônia obtida a partir do tungstato de zircônio

Abstract

The aim of the present work is to explore the production, dispersion and consolidation of zirconia (zirconium oxide – ZrO2), in its hydrous form, obtained from zirconium tungstate (ZrW2O8) in alkaline medium using temperatures up to 100°C. The production of particulate materials was carried out under different experimental conditions (NaOH concentration, time and temperature) in order to investigate how the crystallographic, morphological, chemical and thermal characteristics of the powders are affected and, based on these results, it was possible to infer the mechanism by which micrometric ZrW2O8 powder, water insoluble, yielded nanosized zirconia particles under mild synthesis conditions. This work also explored the dispersion of zirconia particles using triethanolamine (TEOA) as a surfactant, to obtain stable colloidal solutions which could be ultracentrifuged in order to obtain transparent zirconia bodies. It was found, generally, that the particulate materials produced without the addition of TEOA are composed of agglomerated nanoparticles composed mainly of Zr and O, with primary particle sizes near 5 nm having crystallites of less than 3 nm. The powders had a similar crystalline structure to cubic ZrO2 (or a mixture of tetragonal and cubic phases depending on the synthesis conditions), which create high surface area agglomerates with mesoporosity and capacity for water and carbon dioxide adsorption onto different surface sites. The mechanism of synthesis seems to be related to a chemical reaction of substitution between WO4 tetrahedra and hydroxyl ions, with subsequent solubilization of some portions of the structure due to the hydroxyl groups excess in the medium, originating colloidal zirconium ions which polymerize/condense to form crystal nuclei for further growth, in a process facilitated by heterogeneous nucleation and supersaturation. Furthermore, the presence of the remaining tungsten in all samples seems to be an important factor for stabilizing the size and crystalline structure of the materials produced. The use of TEOA in the synthesis process was responsible for the production of yellowish and transparent bodies by ultracentrifugation, similar to gels, which can be understood as a hybrid containing organic material and WOx/ZrO2.