An Easy and Green Route for the Fabrication of NiO Nanoparticles by Starch Template.

NiO nanoparticles have been prepared by thermal decomposition of the nickel acetate/starch precursor in air. N2 adsorption-desorption analysis show that the resultant NiO samples possess nanoporous structures and large BET surface areas. The Brunauer-Emmet-Teller (BET) surface area of NiO increases from 17 to 38 m2·g−1 because of the use of the starch template. The surface area decreases and the average pore diameter increases for the NiO products with increasing heat treatment temperature. The formation mechanism of the NiO nanoparticles was proposed. Furthermore, the electrochemical measurements indicate that the NiO nanoparticles have favorable faradaic pseudocapacitive behavior. The method has also been demonstrated for nickel nitrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]