High surface area α-alumina preparation by using urban waste

Abstract A new method for preparing high surface area α-alumina from urban waste is proposed. The method consists of the precipitation of a precursor that contains bohemite mixed with a linear polymer and subsequently the thermal decomposition of the precursor by heating in nitrogen and air to 1200 °C. The resulting α-alumina consists of nanocrystals of about 100 nm aggregated into larger particles with relatively high surface area (12 m 2 g −1 ) and a significant macropore volume of 0.545 cm 3 g. Methods of X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) were used to characterize microstructure of prepared materials. Results of differential thermal analysis, thermogravimetry and emanation thermal analysis characterized the thermal behaviour of α-alumina precursors.