Rapid mass production of ZnO nanowires by a modified carbothermal reduction method

ZnO nanowires are one of the most important nanomaterials for future optoelectronic nanodevices. However, the challenge of producing great quantities of ZnO nanowires has hindered the wide application and commercialization of ZnO nanowires. Here, we employ a modified carbothermal reduction method to synthesize great quantities of ZnO nanowires within 5 min. The synthesis was carried out in a quartz tube furnace at atmospheric pressure without using any catalysts. A nitrogen/air mixed gas was used as a reactive and carrier gas. About 0.85 g ZnO nanowires were obtained using 1 g ZnO and 1 g graphite powder as source materials. The prepared ZnO nanowires exhibited a hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure. The average length and diameter of the prepared ZnO nanowires were about 1.8 μm and 35 nm, respectively. Optical absorption and photoluminescence properties of the prepared ZnO nanowires have also been investigated.