Porous ceria hollow microspheres: Synthesis and characterization

Porous hollow microspheres of crystalline ceria were synthesized via a simple carbon sphere template method. The as-synthesized products were characterized by techniques of XRD, XPS, SEM, TEM and N2 adsorption–desorption. Structural characterization indicated that as-prepared ceria hollow microspheres (150 nm in diameter) possess porous structure (average pore diameter of 6.5 nm), high surface area (144.1 m2/g), large pore volume (0.23 cm3 g−1) and thin shell (16 nm in thickness) composed of small nanoparticles (mean particle diameter of 4.9 nm). It is expected that as-prepared ceria hollow microspheres have potential applications in several fields as catalysts, catalyst supports, chemical sensors, storage hydrogen devices and optical or electrical materials. A possible mechanism for the formation of ceria hollow spheres was discussed in detail.