Synthesis of nanocrystalline lead oxide particles by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis method

Lead oxide is a very important metal oxide semiconductor and considerable progresses have been made in the study of the production and applications such as in storage battaries, gas sensors and pigments. Nanocrystalline lead oxide particles were synthesized by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis method (USP) using lead nitrate solution under air flow rate at 600°C. Characterization studies of the nanocrystalline particles conducted on not only size and shape morphology of the particles, but also chemical composition, phase determination, crystal size, and band gap energy of the particles by the help of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and UV-vis spectrophotometer. Analyses show that spherical PbO particles are in submicron range, and otherwise their crystalline size was determined 38 nm using Scherrer formulation.