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Abstract
The authors studied the crystallization conditions and formation mechanism of zinc carbonate hydroxide [Zn5(OH)6(CO3)2] based on the crystallization theory. An ammoniacal ammonium carbonate zinc aqueous solution was employed for this aim. After achieving the maximum solubility of zinc in ammonium carbonate solution by controlling its pH and temperature (85°C and pH = 9.5), the crystallization conditions were performed by both diluting with water and heating the saturated solution. The results showed that heating of saturated solution is more practical than diluting with water. The conversion of Zn5(OH)6(CO3)2 to ZnO was carried out by calcination at 400°C for 2 h, based on its decomposition temperature obtained from TGA-DTA analysis. TEM images of obtained the ZnO powder showed that discrete nanoparticles (with the size of about 50–60 nm) were formed after calcination process. The techniques of SEM, TEM, STA, XRD, BET, and Raman spectroscopy were applied for the characterization of the produced materials.