Facile solvothermal synthesis of NIR absorbing Cs_<i>x</i>WO₃nanorods by benzyl alcohol route

Abstract

Near infrared absorbing CsxWO3 nanoparticles with uniform particle size distribution were synthesized in two hours by solvothermal method. Benzyl alcohol was used as a main solvent and a reactant to facilitate a controlled reaction and stabilization in the presence of oleic acid as a capping agent. Different reaction conditions such as reaction time, reaction temperature, and oleic acid amount were studied and reported. Hexagonal CsxWO3 nanorods with average size of 80 nm were obtained in 2 h reaction time, at 240 °C reaction temperature, and 10% vol. oleic acid. Aqueous dispersion of the nanorods showed high transparency (about 80–90%) in visible light with strong near infrared (NIR) light shielding (80–90%). This indicates that CsxWO3 is an attractive material to employ in heat-shielding transparent coatings for windows of buildings and automobiles. Using this simple process, it is possible to synthesize homogenous CsxWO3 nanorods with low temperature and short reaction time. Moreover, the process offers an opportunity for large-scale synthesis of NIR absorbing nanorods.