Browsing by Author "Tshemese, Zikhona"

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    Progress in Green Solvents for the Stabilisation of Nanomaterials: Imidazolium Based Ionic Liquids
    (IntechOpen., 2018) Tshemese, Zikhona; Masikane, Siphamandla C; Mlowe, Sixberth; Revaprasadu, Neerish
    For over a decade, ionic liquids (ILs) have attracted enormous attention from scientists across the globe. The history of these compounds traces back to 1914 where the inception of the first IL with a melting point of 12°C was made. Years later, a progression of the remarkable related compounds have been discovered. Out of many analogous compounds realized from time to time, the imidazolium class of ionic liquid is the most studied because of their air and moisture stability. The physicochemical properties of ILs differ significantly depending on the anionic/cationic species and alkyl chain length. ILs have found application in many scientific fields the most recent being good solvents and stabilizing agents in the nanomaterial synthesis. Studies have showed that ILs not only stabilize as synthesized nanomaterials but also provide environmentally green routes towards nanomaterials engineering.
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    Synthesis and characterization of PbS nanoparticles in an ionic liquid using single and dual source precursors
    (Materials Science and Engineering: B, 2018) Tshemese, Zikhona; Khan, Malik D; Mlowe, Sixberth; Revaprasadu, Neerish
    We report a green route for the synthesis of PbS nanoparticles in an imidazolium based ionic liquid (IL) (1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium methanesulfonate) using single source and dual source precursor methods. Lead ethyl xanthogenate complex was used as single source molecular precursor for the synthesis of PbS nanoparticles, whereas in dual source approach organic sulfur (1-dodecanethiol) and inorganic sulfur (sodium sulfide) sources were used to observe the suitability of different sulfur sources on formation of PbS nanoparticles. The results showed that the temperature has an effect on the as prepared nanoparticles for both routes. X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies confirmed formation of cubic phase of PbS from both routes. Electron microscopy techniques showed that the nanoparticle morphologies differed significantly depending on the synthetic factors such as temperature, nature of precursors and ranged from spherical to cubic shapes.