Cashew nut shells, agro-waste generated from cashew nut factories, are rich in valuable bio-based green and renewable materials.

Cadmium(II) thiosemicarbazone complexes were prepared and characterized by elemental analysis and IR and NMR spectroscopy. The complexes were then investigated as potential single‐source precursors for the synthesis of oleylamine‐capped cadmium sulfide nanoparticles by solvothermal decomposition. The resulting nanomaterials were characterized by powder XRD, TEM, HRTEM, energy‐dispersive X‐ray analysis, and UV/Vis spectroscopy. Peak broadening in the XRD patterns confirmed the presence of relatively small hexagonal CdS nanocrystals. The TEM studies evidenced that the chlorido precursors produced CdS nanostructures whose morphologies differed from those obtained from the iodido precursors. CdS nanoparticles in the form of cubes/spheres/rods and nanodendrite structures were obtained from CdCl2 and CdI2 thiosemicarbazone complexes, respectively. The UV/Vis spectra revealed that the as‐synthesized CdS nanoparticles exhibited a quantum effect due to their sharp band edges, which are blueshifted relative to those of bulk CdS. The size, morphology and shape of the nanoparticles were also shown to depend on the temperature of formation.

The synthesis of pure-phase nickel phosphide is of immense interest due to its wide scale applications in various electrocatalytic reactions. We report the facile synthesis of nickel phosphides and rare...

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.

Four In(III) xanthate complexes, [In(S2COR)3] where R = Me, Et, iPr and sBu, respectively, were synthesized, characterized and subsequently used as single source molecular precursors via a solventless thermolysis route to obtain indium sulfide materials. By choice of precursor and reaction temperature crystalline powders of tetragonal In2S3, cubic In2S3 and cubic In2.77S4 were acquired. The phase identification and purity were conducted through examination of the experimental powder X‐ray diffraction patterns relative to the simulated patterns for single X‐ray crystal diffraction.

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