Ligand-assisted hydrothermal synthesis of ZnWO4 rods and their photocatalytic activities

Abstract ZnWO 4 rods were prepared using a ligand-assisted hydrothermal method with ZnCl 2 and Na 2 WO 4 in the presence of various amines as ligands for zinc ions. The choice of ligand was found to play an important role in the formation of ZnWO 4 rods. The aspect ratio of the ZnWO 4 rods increased with increasing ligand strength. XRD and HRTEM confirmed that the ZnWO 4 rods grow along the [1 0 0] direction. The photochemical activities of the ZnWO 4 rods for the decomposition of Rhodamine 6G were examined. The photocatalytic activity was found to depend on the aspect ratio of the ZnWO 4 rods.