A facile template-free route for synthesis of hollow hexagonal ZnS nano- and submicro-spheres

In the current paper, we report a facile template-free route for 'mass production' of ZnS hollow spheres with nano- and submicro-sizes, employing thiocarbamide, (CH3COO)(2)Zn-2H2O and water as the raw materials. ZnS hollow spheres were obtained via hydrothermal reaction at 140 degrees C for 5 It. XRD analysis showed that the as-prepared ZnS hollow spheres were of hexagonal phase structure. To the best of our knowledge, there were few reports on the preparation of hexagonal ZnS crystals under low temperature (< 300 degrees C) in the literature. Furthermore, there is no report on the hollow structure of hexagonal phase ZnS under such low temperature (140 degrees C). Experimental results showed that the amount of thiocarbamide in the reaction system had a great impact on the size, shape, and structure of the final product. On the basis of the experimental results and our previous work, a possible formation mechanism was suggested.