119Sn Mossbauer spectroscopic study of nanornetric tin dioxide powders prepared by pyrolysis of organotin oxides

This paper reports the results of Sn-119 Mossbauer Spectroscopy of residues from the pyrolysis of Sn3O3Bu6 (1) and Sn4O6Bu4 (2) (Bu = n-butyl) in air, O-2, and N-2. The isomer shift and quadrupole splitting parameters of the samples allowed the identification of the tin oxidation states, as well as the number of non-equivalent coordinated tin sites. The result of the 119Sn Mossbauer study correlates perfectly with those of X-ray electron probe microanalysis, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray powder diffraction for the formation of pure SnO2 from the decomposition of (1) and (2) in air or O-2. However, in N-2, evidences suggest the formation of a mixture of SnO2 and SnO. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.