Economical synthesis of nano alumina powder using an aqueous sol-gel method

Nano alumina powder can be widely used in the fields of electronics, catalyst supports and high temperature applications. In the present article, a nano Al2O3 powder was synthesized by a simple aqueous sol-gel method using inexpensive AlCl3 center dot 6H(2)O and Al powder as raw materials. It was shown that the gel calcined at 1100 degrees C resulted in the formation of a crystalline alpha-Al2O3 nano powder. It had a particle size distribution ranging from 32 to 100 nm after heat treatment at 1200 degrees C. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.