Zirconium Oxide Nanostructures Prepared by Anodic Oxidation
- ORNL
Zirconium oxide is an advanced ceramic material highly useful for structural and electrical applications because of its high strength, fracture toughness, chemical and thermal stability, and biocompatibility. If highly-ordered porous zirconium oxide membranes can be successfully formed, this will expand its real-world applications, such as further enhancing solid-oxide fuel cell technology. Recent studies have achieved various morphologies of porous zirconium oxide via anodization, but they have yet to create a porous layer where nanoholes are formed in a highly ordered array. In this study, electrochemical methods were used for zirconium oxide synthesis due to its advantages over other coating techniques, and because the thickness and morphology of the ceramic films can be easily tuned by the electrochemical parameters, such as electrolyte solutions and processing conditions, such as pH, voltage, and duration. The effects of additional steps such as pre-annealing and post-annealing were also examined. Results demonstrate the formation of anodic porous zirconium oxide with diverse morphologies, such as sponge-like layers, porous arrays with nanoholes ranging from 40 to 75 nm, and nanotube layers. X-ray powder diffraction analysis indicates a cubic crystallographic structure in the zirconium oxide. It was noted that increased voltage improved the ability of the membrane to stay adhered to the zirconium substrate, whereas lower voltages caused a propensity for the oxide film to flake off. Further studies are needed to define the parameters windows that create these morphologies and to investigate other important characteristics such as ionic conductivity.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC05-00OR22725
- OSTI ID:
- 965829
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Undergraduate Research, Vol. VIII, Issue 1
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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