A Facile Approach for the Synthesis of Uniform Hollow Carbon Nanospheres

Abstract

Hollow carbon nanospheres (abbreviated as "HCSs") with a yield of about 90% under transmission electron microscope and scanning electron microscopy observations have been synthesized through a facile approach using acetone and sodium azide as reactants at 400 °C in a sealed autoclave. These HCSs have an outer diameter of 100−500 nm and a shell thickness of ∼20 nm. Their total surface area values evaluated from the analyzes of N2 adsorption isotherm data was 13.1 m2/g. The effects of reaction temperature, the dosage of the reagent, and the capacity of autoclave on the formation of the final products have been studied. Through tuning the experimental parameters, olivary carbon particles or carbon rods also have been selectively prepared. In addition, when acetone was replaced by polyethylene glycol or glucose, HCSs were obtained at 400 °C with a yield of ∼90 and ∼30%, respectively. On the basis of the experimental results, a possible formation mechanism of the hollow carbon nanospheres was discussed.