Influence of Bovine Serum Albumin on the Formation of Na_xCo_2O_4 Compounds

A new method of protein adsorption was investigated for the preparation of nanosized flake Na_xCo_2O_4 compounds.The effects of BSA on the formation of the Na_xCo_2O_4 compounds were investi- gated.The results show that the average particle size of colloidal precursor can be clearly decreased with the increasing of BSA concentration to 1.5-2.5mg/mL.The formation ofγ-Na_(0.71)Co_(0.96)O_2 crystalline phase is inhibited with the increasing of BSA concentration.The crystalline phase composition and morphology of calcined precursor are influenced by BSA obviously.After calcined at 800℃,ultra-thin flakeγ-Na_(0.71)Co_(0.96)O_2 crystals are obtained with about 200 nm in thickness and about 1-5μm in width along the plane direction.Compared with solid state reaction,the thickness of flake Na_xCo_2O_4 crystals obtained by this new method is dramatically decreased.