An experimental study on thermal decomposition of microwave synthesized Cu2(OH)3Cl to copper oxide nanoparticles

This work presents the thermal decomposition of dicopper chloride trihydroxide [Cu-2(OH)(3)Cl] into a stable phase of copper oxide under nitrogen atmosphere. A dedicated single-mode sealed-vessel microwave reactor is used to synthesize the precursor, Cu-2(OH)(3)Cl. Based on the thermogravimetric (TG) curve, Cu-2(OH)(3)Cl is subjected to pyrolysis at different temperatures in the range of 250 degrees C to 900 degrees C in a tubular furnace, mimicking the TGA operating conditions. The resulting sequential products are investigated using powder x-ray diffraction technique to understand the fundamental chemical and the structural changes of the precursor during the thermal decomposition process. Further, transmission electron microscopy studies of the precursor, as well as pyrolyzed samples, their stability under e-beam, and associated phase transitions of copper oxide, are also presented.