a b s t r a c t
Nanocrystalline MgO was synthesized via the sol–gel combustion method using polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)
and metal nitrate as precursor. The obtained powders were characterized using infrared absorption spectroscopy
(IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), BET (Brunauer–Emmett–Teller), transmission electron microscopy
(TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The effects of the thermal treatment parameters on the
crystallite growth kinetics, crystalline size and specific surface area were investigated. The crystallite size
of MgO increases with increasing temperature, whereas the specific surface area decreases with increasing
temperature. The activation energy for the crystallite growth was estimated to be approximately
223.7 kJ/mol. MgO with crystallite size in range of 13.6 nm to 98.7 nm and a specific surface area up to
81.54 m2g1 can be produced by controlling the processing parameters. The crystallite size growth during
combustion is consistent with grain rotation coalescence, which seems to be related to the loss of external
hydroxyl groups, derived from chemisorbed water, in the samples treated at higher combustion
temperatures.