Ni-Al2O3 Nanocomposite with High Specific Surface Area Synthesized by Mixture of Fuels through Solution Combustion

This paper investigates the application of a mixture of three types of fuels, namely urea, glycine and hydrazine, for the synthesis of Ni-10 wt. % Al2O3 nanocomposite using the solution combustion method. Nickel and aluminum nitrates are used as an oxidizer. The fuels are used at two different fuel to oxidizer ratios. DSC-TGA diagrams prove hydrazine-nitrate reaction system can ignite before nitrate decomposition in contrary to urea-nitrate and glycinenitrate systems. The results showed synthesized alumina at combustion temperatures less than 500°C is amorphous and the combustion temperatures more than 600 °C made alumina crystalline. The measured surface area for the synthesized nanocomposite in air and less than 10 min was 207 m² g^-1. SEM and FESEM images prove the presence of small porosities in the synthesized nanocomposites. TEM image shows synthesized alumina in the nanocomposite has a mean particle size of less than 25 nm.