Thermoanalytical investigations on the solid-state synthesis of Sr-doped praseodymium alkaline-earth cobalt oxides

In this study, the formation and characteristics of Sr-doped praseodymium alkaline-earth cobalt oxide were studied as a function of the strontium content (x). PrBa_1-xSr_xCo₂O_5+d ceramics with x = 0.0, 1/16, 1/8, 1/4, and 1/2.5 were prepared by solid-state reaction method from Pr₆O₁₁, BaCO₃, SrCO₃, and Co₃O₄. The solid-state reaction mechanisms were analyzed by differential thermal analysis (DTA) and thermogravimetry (TG) techniques to characterize properly the distinct thermal events occurring during synthesis of layered perovskite-type PrBa_1-xSr_x Co₂O _5+d oxides. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results were used to assist the interpretation of DTA-TG analyses. The TG, DTA, and XRD results for the mixtures showed that the solid-state reaction between precursors was completed in a temperature range between 800 and 1000 °C. The strong influence of strontium contents (x) on the solid-state reaction temperatures and PrBa _1-xSr_xCo₂O_5+d structure was found.