Synthesis of ZnO whiskers via hydrothermal decomposition route
(Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China)
Abstract: ZnO whiskers with a length of 30−40 mm and a diameter of about 1 mm were synthesized by co-precipitation of ZnSO4 and Na2CO3 solution at room temperature followed by hydrothermal treatment of the as-prepared Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 precursor at 160 ℃ for 6 h. The increase of the initial solution pH promotes the hydrothermal conversion of the particulate Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 to ZnO whiskers. The presence of minor amount of EDTA in the hydrothermal solution promotes the one dimensional growth of ZnO whiskers, leading to the formation of ZnO whiskers with a length of 50−60 mm and a diameter of 1−2 mm.
Key words: basic zinc carbonate; zinc oxide; whiskers; hydrothermal decomposition