Morphology-dependent photocatalytic activities of hierarchical microstructures of ZnO

A range of hierarchical microstructures of ZnO were prepared using a hydrothermal method with Zn(NO3)2 and N,N-dimethyl ethylenediamine (DMEDA) in the presence of sodium 1-undecanesulfonate. The resulting ZnO products exhibited rod-, peanut-, dumbbell-, and notched spherical-like shapes. With increasing sodium 1-undecanesulfonate concentration, the morphology of the ZnO products evolved from rod-like, through to peanut- and dumbbell-like, then to notched spheres with higher hierarchy. The photocatalytic activities of the ZnO products for the decomposition of Rhodamine 6G were examined. The morphology of ZnO products had a significant effect on the photocatalytic activity. The mechanism of the morphology-controlled synthesis of ZnO and their morphology-dependent photocatalytic activity are discussed.