ZnO spherical porous nanostructures obtained by thermal decomposition of zinc palmitate

•Calcination of zinc palmitate produce pure ZnO nanoparticles and nanostructures.•By controlling the calcination temperature different morphologies are obtained.•Calcination of Zinc Palmitate at 800 °C produces spherical ZnO nanostructures.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles and nanostructures were prepared by a facile thermal decomposition approach using zinc palmitate as zinc precursor compound. Structural analysis using X-Ray diffraction showed that all products were of high purity and crystallized in the hexagonal wurtzite-type structure. By controlling the calcination temperature and the cooling process two different morphologies were obtained: well dispersed ZnO nanoparticles and porous spherical aggregates.