Yongdi Li

Fabrication of tungsten carbide nanoparticles from refluxing derived precursor

Tungsten carbide (WC) nanoparticles were fabricated from a novel refluxing-derived precursor. The precursor was prepared by acid hydrolysis of Na2WO4 with concentrated HCl in water followed by refluxing with ethanol and n-Dedocane, respectively. Then it was heat-treated to 1 200 °C for 2 h in vacuum to obtain WC nanoparticles. X-ray studies reveal the formation of hexagonal tungsten carbide and the grain size of 24.3 nm. SEM image shows WC nanoparticles with particle size of 20–60 nm. Long time refluxing results in alkane dehydrogenation and coke formation. The coke is the carbon source in the carbothermal reduction reaction. The novel route of two-stage refluxing is quite general and can be applied in the synthesis of similar carbides.