Effect of Ni-Doping on ZnO Nanostructures Properties

In this work we have prepared and characterized nanoparticles of zinc oxides (ZnO) pure and doped with Nickel by the Sol Gel method. This non-costly, easy method makes it possible to have more homogeneous powders with a finer particle size. XRD analysis confirmed hexagonal würtzite-like structure of ZnO nanoparticles. Sizes of these nanoparticles are in an order of magnitude of a few tens of nanometers. The doping of ZnO nanopowders with 5% Ni improved the crystalline quality; this is revealed by the increase in the intensity of the peaks. The infrared absorption spectroscopy (FTIR) made it possible to identify the nature of the bonds present in the ZnO nanopowders. FTIR spectra confirmed two characteristic bands attributed to Zn–O stretching bands. The degradation rate of methylene blue (D) of pure ZnO reaches 99.6% after 90 min. Nickel doping greatly reduced the degradation (D) from 99.6 to 21%.