Formation of α- and β-phase Mn-doped zinc silicate in supercritical water and its luminescence properties at Si/(Zn+Mn) ratios from 0.25 to 1.25

Mn-doped Zn(2)SiO(4) (ZSM) was synthesized in supercritical water under batch conditions to study the effect of Si molar ratio on ZSM phase formation and its luminescence properties. Precursors were prepared with zinc oxalate dihydrate, manganese oxalate, and amorphous SiO(2), where Mn/(Zn+Mn) molar ratio was a constant of 0.02 and Si/(Zn+Mn) molar ratios were varied from 0.25 to 1.25. Reaction conditions were chosen to be 400 degrees C, a pressure of 29 MPa, and for a reaction time of 90 min. At a stoichiometric Si ratio of 0.5, green-emitting alpha-Zn(2)SiO(4) Was only phase formed. At Si ratios from 0.55 to 1.25, an alpha-Zn(2)SiO(4) phase and yellow-emitting beta-Zn(2)SiO(4) phase were formed along with unreacted amorphous SiO(2). As Si ratio increased, the emission color of the materials changed from the green region to the yellow-green region. The main phases present in the system, ZnO-SiO(2)-H(2)C, at 400 degrees C, 29 MPa, and 90 min were alpha-Zn(2)SiO(4) and beta-Zn(2)SiO(4), while other phases such as ZnSiO(3) and Zn(4)Si(2)O(7)(OH)(2). H(2)O did not appear after reaction in supercritical water under these experimental conditions. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.