Multishelled Metal Oxide Hollow Spheres: Easy Synthesis and Formation Mechanism

Uniform multishelled NiO, Co₃O₄, ZnO, and Au@NiO hollow spheres were synthesized (NiO and Co₃O₄hollow spheres for the first time) by a simple shell-by-shell self-assembly allowing for tuning of the the size, thickness and shell numbers by controlling the heat treatment, glucose/metal salt molar ratio, and hydrothermal reaction time. These findings further the development of synthetic methodologies for multishelled hollow structures and could open up new opportunities for deeper understanding of the mechanisms of shell-by-shell self-assembly. Moreover, the double-shelled NiO hollow sphere exhibits a higher photocatalytic activity for degradation of methyl orange than its morphological counterparts.