Study of nickel precursors in (Ni,M,Ti)O2 (M = Sb, Nb) yellow ceramic pigments

Abstract NixTi1 - 3xM2xO2 (M = Sb, Nb; 0·05 ≤ x ≤ 0·10) samples have been synthesised from mixtures of NiO, Nb2O5, Sb2O3, and TiO2. From characterisation of these samples, x = 0·05 was chosen to compare results with different nickel precursors. Thus samples of Ni0·05Ti0·85M0·10O2 (M = Sb, Nb) were also prepared from NiCO3.3Ni(OH)2.4H2O, NiCl2.6H2O, Ni(NO3)2.6H2O, NiSO4.6H2O, and Ni(CH3COO)2.4H2O. A eutectic mixture of alkaline halides (NaF:2NaCl) was used as fluxing agent. Optimal yellow colour was found in the mixture of NiSO4.6H2O, Sb2O5, and TiO2 fired at 1100°C for 2 h.