A facile chemical route to α-Zn3(PO4)2·4H2O hierarchical sphere structures assembled by nanosheets

Novel α-Zn3(PO4)2·4H2O hierarchical sphere structures have been synthesized by a simple chemical method through the reaction between zinc acetate and orthophosphoric acid by using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as capping reagent at room temperature. The structures and morphologies of the as-obtained products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The influences of the synthetic parameters on the morphologies of the final products were investigated. The experimental results clearly show that both the concentration of CTAB aqueous solution and the concentration of initial reagents play important roles in the formation of the α-Zn3(PO4)2·4H2O hierarchical sphere structure. Detailed proofs indicated that the process of crystal growth was dominated by a self-assembly growth mechanism.

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► Quadrate-like nanosheets are synthesized.
► The quadrate-like nanosheets are assembled to cross-like crystals each other.
► The cross-like structures are obtained by a sheet-assisted process.
► Novel α-Zn3(PO4)2·4H2O hierarchical sphere consisting of nanosheets are obtained.