Large-scale synthesis of uniform lanthanum oxide nanowires via template-free deposition followed by heat-treatment

A simple two-step method is proposed for the large scale preparation of La2O3 nanowires without any template and additive: (i) cathodic electrodeposition and (ii) heat-treatment. In the first step, La(OH)3 was easily deposited on the steel cathode from 0.005 M La(NO3)3 bath by applying Ia of 2 mA cm−2. In the second one, the prepared hydroxide precursor was heat-treated at 600 °C for 3 h in dry air atmosphere. The physico-chemical changes of the hydroxide deposit on heating were investigated by DSC–TG analysis and the results were discussed. The structural characterizations by XRD and FT-IR, and morphological observations via SEM revealed that well-crystallized and uniform La2O3 nanowires are easily achievable via cathodic deposition followed by heat-treatment.