Solvothermal synthesis and characterization of barium titanate powders

Cubic BaTiO3 powders have been synthesized from gel powders after thermal treatment in an alcohol solution and characterized using X-ray diffractometry, transmission electron microscopy, and other techniques in detail, The borderline reaction conditions, such as the reaction temperature and time, for the synthesis of crystalline BaTiO3 powder in different solvents are established, The single-phase BaTiO3 powder has low agglomeration and seems to have a regular morphology. The formation of BaTiO3 powders via solvothermal reaction is more difficult, in comparison to hydrothermal processing. The crystalline powders, which have a small particle size (similar to 20-60 nm) and narrow particle-size distribution, can be synthesized in methanol, ethanol, or n-propanol systems. Unlike the hydrothermal reaction, tetragonal-phase BaTiO3 powders cannot be prepared via the solvothermal reaction, even with alkali catalysts.