Hydrolysis of Zn Ions: Controllable Synthesis of ZnxCo1-x(OH)F Nanostructures with Their Electrochemical and Optical Properties

摘要

Recently, the synthesis and properties of metal hydroxide fluorides have attracted more attention. In this paper, a series of bimetallic hydroxyl fluorides, ZnxCo1-x(OH)F, were grown on a functionalized carbon fiber paper via a template-/binder-free hydrothermal method, whose nanostructures can be controlled only by adjusting the addition of Zn2+. On the basis of a series of experiments, the mechanism of morphology evolution is proposed first, in which Zn2+ hydrolyzes under hydrothermal conditions to form colloidal micelles, flocculate, and adsorb with other ions. The mechanism of Zn hydrolysis has been verified in other substrates, providing a novel thinking of the design of nanostructure. What is more, the electrochemical properties of the obtained ZnxCo1-x(OH)F have been studied, illustrating that it processes redox reactions and ion adsorption/desorption simultaneously as a quasi-pseudocapacitance material. On the other hand, the optical properties have been analyzed by the UV-visible absorption spectrum, in which the absorption peaks can be observed around 494, 526, and 628 nm in the visible light region. The above properties illustrate that the obtained ZnxCo1-x(OH)F have potentials in various fields as a novel material, such as electrochemical, physical, or optical fields.