Synthesis and optical properties of environmentally benign and highly uniform NaCe(MoO4)2 based yellow nanopigments

Highlights: • Uniform NaCeMoO₄ nanopigments have been synthesized by homogeneous precipitation in polyol medium. • Particle size can be tuned in the nanometer range by doping with variable amounts of Y³⁺ or Gd³⁺. • The synthesized nanoparticles showed a yellow color with a slight orange hue. • These nanopigments constitute an ecofriendly alternative to more toxic commercial yellow pigments. • The synthesized nanoparticles are free of aggregation and might be suitable for injet-printing. A method for the synthesis of uniform and aggregation free NaCeMoO₄ based nanospheroids with tunable size is reported. The procedure is based on a precipitation reaction at 120 °C for 20 h from solutions containing Na₂MoO₄, sodium citrate and Ce(NO₃)₃ and different amounts of Y(NO₃)₃ or Gd(NO₃)₃. The role played by the later compounds on the formation of the particles and their morphological and structural characteristics is analyzed through the analysis of the mechanism of particle formation. The chromaticity coordinates of the obtained samples are also evaluated showing that the here reported nanoparticles constitute an ecofriendly alternative to more toxic commercial yellow pigments. The synthesized nanoparticles are also free of aggregation in water suspensions and might be suitable for injet-printing technologies.