US 12540081 B1Patent grantUnited States

Microwave-Synthesized Copper Functional Nanomaterial

Official patent title

Copper hydroxy nitrate/ calcium silicate @graphite-phase carbon nitride (Cu2(OH)3NO3/CaSiO3@g-C3N4) nanostructure

Arabic title: بنية نانوية من نترات هيدروكسي النحاس/سيليكات الكالسيوم@نتريد الكربون بطور الغرافيت (Cu2(OH)3NO3/CaSiO3@g-C3N4)

Invention

Problem

Multiphase nanomaterials require reproducible synthesis routes that control phase integration, rod-and-wire morphology, dispersion on nanosheets, and mesoporosity without lengthy multistep processing.

Why it matters

Controlled morphology and high surface area can make a composite useful for later catalyst, adsorption, sensing, or electrochemical screening, although application performance must be demonstrated separately.

Approach

The process mixes calcium silicate, graphitic carbon nitride, and a copper salt in glycol and applies pressurized microwave heating to form a Cu2(OH)3NO3/CaSiO3@g-C3N4 nanostructure.

Who may benefit

Potential beneficiaries include nanomaterial researchers, microwave-synthesis laboratories, catalyst developers, porous-material manufacturers, and specialty-chemical suppliers.

Potential value

The method integrates copper hydroxy nitrate and calcium-silicate rods with carbon-nitride nanosheets while defining microwave conditions and measurable morphology and porosity ranges.

Background

Multiphase nanostructures can expose interfaces and surface sites that are unavailable in bulk powders, but their properties depend strongly on precursor chemistry, thermal history, mixing, pressure, and morphology. Microwave-assisted synthesis can shorten heating and promote nucleation, while carbon-nitride nanosheets provide a support for inorganic structures. Translation beyond material preparation requires reproducible phase composition, batch uniformity, precursor safety, copper-release testing, and application-specific benchmarks. This patent primarily defines a synthesis route and physical structure rather than a demonstrated end-use process.

Technology overview

Claim 1 mixes CaSiO3, g-C3N4, and a copper salt in glycol and microwaves the mixture, with the three components in a 0.5–1.5:0.5–1.5:0.5–1.5 mass ratio. Further claims specify urea heating at 550–650 °C for 30–60 minutes and microwave treatment at 160–200 °C, 4–6 bar, for 30–90 minutes. The material has 1–10 μm rods, 10–100 nm protruding wires, 3–7 nm pores, 140–160 m²/g BET area, and 0.1–0.5 cm³/g pore volume.

Potential applications

Microwave nanomaterial synthesis research.
Porous catalyst-support screening.
Adsorbent-material development studies.
Electrochemical and sensor-material evaluation.

Evidence-supported advantages

Defines a pressurized microwave synthesis route.
Combines rods, nanowires, and nanosheets.
Provides high claimed BET surface area.
Specifies mesopore and pore-volume ranges.
Uses selectable calcium, silicate, and copper salts.

Development stage

A synthesis method and claimed morphology and porosity ranges are described; application-specific performance and commercialization were not established. The development stage was not independently verified.

Commercial opportunity

The nanostructure could be licensed as a platform material after a target application is selected. Commercial evaluation requires resolving formula inconsistencies in the claims, confirming phase purity and batch reproducibility, microwave-reactor scale-up, energy and pressure economics, precursor handling, copper leaching, stability and reuse, and benchmarked performance in the intended catalyst, adsorbent, sensor, or electrode use.

Patent classifications

WIPO IPC

C01G3/08Compounds containing metals not covered by subclasses C01D or C01F
B82Y40/00Specific uses or applications of nanostructures; measurement or analysis of nanostructures; manufacture or treatment of nanostructures

CPC

C01G3/08Compounds containing metals not covered by subclasses C01D or C01F
B82Y40/00Specific uses or applications of nanostructures; measurement or analysis of nanostructures; manufacture or treatment of nanostructures
C01P2002/01Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2002/72Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2002/90Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2004/04Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2004/16Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2004/45Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2004/80Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2006/12Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2006/14Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds
C01P2006/16Indexing scheme for structural and physical aspects of solid inorganic compounds

Inventors

First inventorBabiker Yagoub Elhadi Abdulkhair
InventorMohamed Khairy Abdel Fattah Omran

Keywords

copper hydroxy nitrate
calcium silicate
graphitic carbon nitride
microwave synthesis
nanorods
nanowires
mesoporous material
BET surface area

Patent document and drawings

The patent publication is mapped to this record. Patent drawings remain within that publication; no separately cleared public media package has been supplied.