Abstract
ZnO nano-bullets were synthesized using solution plasma from only Zn electrode in water without any chemical agents. In this sustainable synthesis system, the rapid quenching reaction at the interface between the plasma/liquid phases facilitates the fast formation of nano-sized materials. The coil-to-pin type electrode geometry, which overcomes the discharge interruption owing to the electrode gap broadening of the typical pin-to-pin type enables the synthesis of numerous nanomaterials through a stable discharge for 1 h. The as-prepared samples exhibited a high crystalline ZnO structure without post calcination, and the length and width were 71.8 and 29.1 nm, respectively. The main exposed facet of ZnO nano-bullets was the (100) crystal facet, but interestingly, the (101) facet was confirmed at the inclined surfaces in the edges. The (101) crystal facet has an asymmetric Zn and O atom arrangement, and it could result in a focused electron density area with relatively high reactivity. Therefore, ZnO nano-bullets are promising materials for applications in advanced technologies.
Highlights
Depending on the purpose, the synthesis of nanoscale metal oxide materials is innovative for wide applications such as gas sensors, catalysis, energy storage, conversion devices, and biomedical applications
Uniform nano-sized ZnO materials were synthesized by rapid quenching at the plasma/liquid interface and post-calcination was not required for obtaining crystalline ZnO structures
The as-synthesized ZnO nanobullets could be applied in advanced technology owing to their advantages in size and morphology
Summary
The synthesis of nanoscale metal oxide materials is innovative for wide applications such as gas sensors, catalysis, energy storage, conversion devices, and biomedical applications. ZnO is used in numerous applications owing to its excellent chemical and thermal stability. Numerous synthesis methods such as hydrothermal,[1,2] sol–gel,[3] solvothermal,[4] and microwave,[5] have been developed to fabricate ZnO nanomaterials. The generation of electrons and radicals by plasma can lead to rapid chemical reactions without catalysts.[11,12,13] In particular, the solution plasma method that directly discharges the liquid is a suitable synthesis method for manufacturing nanomaterials because of the radical reaction and rapid quenching at the plasma/liquid interface.
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