title: In2O3 hollow microspheres: synthesis from designed In(OH)3 precursors and applications in gas sensors and photocatalysis.
abstract: In this work, well-shaped In(OH)3 hollow microspheres have been successfully prepared via a novel surfactant-free vesicle-template-interface route in the "formamide-resorcinol-water" system, in which spontaneous vesicles were formed under hydrothermal conditions and NH3 from the hydrolysis of formamide acted as the OH- provider. Morphological and structural characterizations indicate that the shells of as-prepared In(OH)3 hollow microspheres were constructed by numerous nanocubes about 80 nm in size. As desired, In2O3 hollow microspheres were obtained from annealing the designed In(OH)3 precursors, and the as-obtained In2O3 hollow microspheres performed well as a gas-sensing material in response to both ethanol and formaldehyde gases and as a photocatalyst for photocatalytic degradation of rhodamine B. The facile preparation method and the improved properties derived from special microstructures are significant in the synthesis and future applications of functional nanomaterials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nanomaterials and Nanochemistry, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Benxia
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jing
authors.forename: Guoxin
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rong
authors.forename: Yecang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Guangzhao
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zhang