Synthesis and Characterization of Nano Silicon Carbide Powder from Agricultural Waste

Abstract

In this study nanoparticles of SiC were produced through direct pyrolysis of rice husk. The major inorganic component of rice husk is silica, which is highly pure, amorphous, with large surface area and highly reactive. Rice husk used in this study was treated with a silica source in order to enrich the silica content. The synthesis was carried out in an argon atmosphere at 1600°C. Activation energy for the formation of SiC was calculated using Arrhenius equation and found to be 110 kJ.mol⁻¹ for raw rice husk and 139 kJ.mol⁻¹ for treated rice husk. The SEM study of pyrolysed rice husk shows that whiskers formed in the silica rich zone and particles formed in the carbon rich zone.

Keywords:

• Rice husk
• Nano SiC
• Activation energy
• SEM