Zn(Ta1-xNbx)2O6 nanomaterials: Synthesis, characterization and corrosion behaviour

Zn(Ta1-xNbx)2O6 pseudo-binary oxide nanocrystalline materials (where x = 1; 0.5; 0.1; 0.05 and 0) were obtained through the solid-state method and characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy and Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. In addition, their morphology and topography have been determined by field emission-scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). There is a significant dependence between the rugosity and the uniformity of crystals. The evenly crystals organized in multilayers have the lowest value of rugosity and the non uniform fractal type architectures have the highest value of rugosity. The compounds? anti-corrosion features were evaluated after deposition on carbon steel (OL) in 0.1 M Na2SO4 media by open circuit potential measurement and potentiodynamic polarization technique with Tafel representation. The inhibition efficiency of pseudo-binary oxides deposited on carbon steel electrode was in the range 42.3-52.7 % promising for their further multiple layer deposition with porphyrins in order to improve anticorrosion properties. Due to the high band gap (3.80 - 4.30 eV) provided by increasing the tantalum content, four of these pseudo-binary oxides might find applications in photovoltaic cells.