A study of the effect of structural transformations in the course of Ce-2(C2O4)(3)center dot 10H(2)O thermal decomposition on the morphology of CeO2 obtained

Cerium oxalate decahydrate was subjected to a thermal decomposition to obtain nanocrystalline ceria. It was shown that conditions during dehydration strongly influence morphology of the final product. If one performs dehydration of the precursor under a vacuum or in air, CeO₂ can be obtained in pseudomorph, i.e. the precursor's crystal shape is retained. An increase of water vapor pressure leads to the formation of different intermediates and fragmentation of the precursor's crystals. Investigation by various physical methods (TEM, XRD, and BET) provided the information that the final product consisted of CeO₂ particles 5-6 nm in size.