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Rapid Synthesis of Mesoporous, Nano‐Sized MgCr 2 O 4 and Its Catalytic Properties
Author(s) -
Tripathi Vikash Kumar,
Nagarajan Rajamani
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of the american ceramic society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.9
H-Index - 196
eISSN - 1551-2916
pISSN - 0002-7820
DOI - 10.1111/jace.14036
Subject(s) - calcination , spinel , raman spectroscopy , crystallite , transmission electron microscopy , analytical chemistry (journal) , materials science , fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , mesoporous material , selected area diffraction , powder diffraction , nuclear chemistry , catalysis , chemistry , crystallography , nanotechnology , chemical engineering , organic chemistry , metallurgy , engineering , physics , optics
Monophasic MgCr 2 O 4 has been synthesized by calcining the gel formed by the addition of epoxide to an ethanolic solution containing MgCl 2 ·6H 2 O and CrCl 3 ·6H 2 O. The sample has been characterized by a variety of analytical techniques including powder X‐ray diffraction ( PXRD ), FT ‐ IR , Raman, UV –Visible spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and magnetic measurements at room temperature. Calcining the xerogel at 500°C and 700°C for 2 h yielded MgCr 2 O 4 (yield of almost 61% by weight). BET surface area of 33.95 m 2 /g with an average pore diameter of 28.45 nm was obtained for the sample after calcination at 700°C. Square facets of the cubic spinel structure were observed in TEM images with an average crystallite diameter of 18 nm. HR ‐ TEM experiments and SAED measurements confirmed the spinel structure and negated the presence of other phases. The presence of MO 4 tetrahedral and MO 6 octahedral units in MgCr 2 O 4 has also been evidenced from FTIR and Raman spectra. The sample showed paramagnetic behavior at room temperature with μ eff of 3.54 B.M suggesting the presence of Cr in III oxidation state. Its use as an efficient catalyst for the oxidative degradation of Xylenol Orange ( XO ) and the photo degradation of Rhodamine‐6G (Rh‐6G) dyes have been demonstrated as these dye molecules are environmental pollutants.