A promising method for the preparation of sizeable quantities of structurally well-defined, highpurity MgO powder is reported. The morphology and surface uniformity of the powder is comparable to that of MgO smokes but with narrow size distribution of particles. Sample characterization of these oxide powders is accomplished by combining structural TEM/STEM examination with krypton gas adsorption isotherms. The latter technique is sensitive to the presence of surface hydroxyl groups and of surface roughness on an atomic scale. Highresolution TEM indicates a perfect cubic morphology, intra-crystallite orientation, and dendritic sintering of cubes. In the STEM mode sharp convergent beam electron diffraction patterns are obtained, and in thick specimen regions Kikuchi lines appear, indicating the absence of crystal defects. After prolonged outgassing to remove surface hydroxyl groups, a krypton adsorption isotherm contains a near vertical submonolayer riser and second layer step along with partial wetting features near saturation. These near-ideal dendritic ceramic powders, therefore, provide a research bridge between single crystal surface studies and large-scale powder technology.
Characterization of the ion-exchange properties of surface hydroxyl groups on metal oxides.
