Fabrication of hierarchical β-Co(OH)2 microspheres via hydrothermal process

Hierarchical β-Co(OH)2 microspheres with 20–50 μm diameter assembled from nanoplate building blocks were successfully fabricated via a hydrothermal process in the presence of a cation surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). The products are characterized in detail by multiform techniques: X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray analysis. The effect of CTAB and pH value on the β-Co(OH)2 morphology was also investigated. When pH value is maintained at 9, an appropriate added amount of CTAB (3 g) is the crucial prerequisite for the formation of this interesting morphology. In this experiment, pH value of the solution and the cation surfactant CTAB together results in the formation of hierarchical β-Co(OH)2 microsphere structures assembled from nanoplates.