Background:
Innovation mission in materials science requires new approaches to form functional materials,
wherein the concept of its formation begins in nano/micro scale. Rare earth oxides with general form (RE2O3; RE from
La to Lu, including Sc and Y) exhibit particular proprieties, being used in a vast field of applications with high
technological content since agriculture to astronomy. Despite of their applicability, there is a lack of studies on surface
chemistry of rare earth oxides. Zeta potential determination provides key parameters to form smart materials by
controlling interparticle forces, as well as their evolution during processing. This paper reports a study on zeta potential
with emphasis for rare earth oxide nanoparticles. A brief overview on rare earths, as well as zeta potential, including
sample preparation, measurement parameters, and the most common mistakes during this evaluation are reported.
Methods:
A brief overview on rare earths, including zeta potential, and interparticle forces are presented. A practical
study on zeta potential of rare earth oxides - RE2O3 (RE as Y, Dy, Tm, Eu, and Ce) in aqueous media is reported.
Moreover, sample preparation, measurement parameters, and common mistakes during this evaluation are discussed.
Results:
Potential zeta values depend on particle characteristics such as size, shape, density, and surface area. Besides,
preparation of samples which involves electrolyte concentration and time for homogenization of suspensions are
extremely valuable to get suitable results.
Conclusion:
Zeta potential evaluation provides key parameters to produce smart materials seeing that interparticle forces
can be controlled. Even though zeta potential characterization is mature, investigations on rare earth oxides are very
scarce. Therefore, this innovative paper is a valuable contribution on this field.
