Pencil-like zinc oxide micro/nano-scale structures: Hydrothermal synthesis, optical and photocatalytic properties

Zinc oxide micro/nanopencils have been successfully synthesized by hydrothermal process using zinc acetate and diamines as structure-directing agents. The morphology, the structure, the crystallinity and the composition of the materials were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The optical properties of synthesized ZnO were investigated by UV–vis spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity of the material has been evaluated by the degradation of methylene blue under UV irradiation. As a result, after the lapse of 150 min, around 82% bleaching was observed, with ZnO nanopencils yielding more photodegradation compared to that of commercial ZnO (61%).