Abstract
The Mg/Al layered double hydroxides (LDHs) were successfully synthesized by novel aqueous sol-gel method. A series of europium-substituted layered double hydroxides (Mg/Al/Eu LDHs) were also synthesized using the same sol-gel processing. The Eu3+ substitution effects were investigated in the Mg3/Al1-xEux system by changing the amount of Eu3+ in the crystal lattice from 0.05 to 10 mol%. The samples obtained were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Thermogravimetric (TG) analysis, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Fluorescence Spectroscopy (FLS). The results revealed that europium enters into a hydrotalcite structure containing Mg2+ and Al3+ cations in the brucite-like layers.
Keywords: Layered double hydroxides, Mg/Al/Eu, sol-gel processing, europium substitution effects, luminescent properties.
Graphical Abstract