Hydrothermal synthesis and characterizations of 2D and 3D 4ZnO·B2O3·H2O nano/microstructures with different morphologies

2D and 3D nano/microstructures of 4ZnO·B2O3·H2O with different morphologies have been successfully synthesized by a hydrothermal route in the presence of surfactant polyethylene glycol-300 (PEG-300). Lamellar-like nanoparticles and microsphere organizations of nano and microrods are fabricated by varying the reaction conditions. The products have been characterized by XRD, FT-IR, TG–DTA and SEM. The XRD data indicate the as-prepared samples present at pure phase 4ZnO·B2O3·H2O with monoclinic symmetry. The SEM results reveal that the lamellar-like particles are about 30 nm in thickness and around several hundred nanometers in diameter. The microsphere organizations have different diameters, and the secondary structures are made from rod-like particles with different size and mode, respectively. The morphologies of products strongly depend on surfactant, hydrothermal temperature and time.

Graphical abstract2D and 3D nano/microstructures with different morphologies of an industrially important zinc borate, 4ZnO·B2O3·H2O, have been prepared by the hydrothermal method using PEG-300 as soft template. By controlling the reaction conditions, lamellar-like nanoparticles and microsphere organizations of nano and microrods have been prepared. The effect of reaction conditions and the growth mechanism has been proposed.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide