Analysis of ball size variation effect on nanomaterial particle size distribution using a laboratory-scale horizontal ball mill

Abstract Nanomaterials have significant potential in various applications; however, their performance is strongly influenced by particle size and distribution. This study aims to investigate the effect of ball size variation in the ball milling process on the particle size distribution of nanomaterials and to determine the most effective ball size for achieving a uniform distribution. Ceramic balls with diameters of 2.5 mm, 1 mm, and 0.5 mm were used, along with one control sample without milling. The milling process was carried out for 10 hours at a rotation speed of 850 rpm using a horizontal ball mill. The characterization of particle size and morphology was conducted using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDX), with particle size analysis performed using Gaussian fitting. The results showed that 1 mm balls produced an average particle size of 71.77 nm, with 77.47% of particles in the range of 0.0–1.0 μm and the smallest distribution width (w) of 24.85 nm. The 2.5 mm balls produced an average size of 62.04 nm with a dominant fraction of 95.28% but a wider distribution width (30.23 nm), while the 0.5 mm balls yielded an average size of 69.33 nm with 76.53% dominance and a distribution width of 31.11 nm. These findings indicate that the 1 mm balls were the most effective in producing relatively uniform nanomaterial particles, as evidenced by the smallest distribution width, even though complete homogeneity was not achieved.