Mechanistic Insight into the ZnO-Assisted Growth of Sn6O4(OH)4 Three-Dimensional Dendritic Hexapods

This article reports ZnO-assisted growth of three-dimensional (3D) dendritic hexapods of tin(II) oxyhydroxide (Sn6O4(OH)(4)) from acidic aqueous solution of stannous sulfate (SnSO4). Each Sn6O4(OH)(4) hexapod has four long horizontally and two short vertically oriented dendritic branches. The formation of Sn6O4(OH)(4) can be ascribed to the presence of ZnO whose surfaces are rich in hydroxyl groups. When covered by SnSO4 acidic aqueous solution, a large amount of hydroxyl groups is released from ZnO surfaces and further promotes the hydrolysis of SnSO4 towards Sn6O4(OH)(4). Time-dependent shape evolution from the nanoparticles-assembled hierarchical octahedra to the 3D dendritic hexapods has been explored. The growth of Sn6O4(OH)(4) 3D dendritic hexapods has been explained based on a nanoparticle-mediated, diffusion-limited dendritic growth mechanism. Sn6O4(OH)(4) can be selectively converted to semiconducting SnO or SnO2 for potential sensing and catalytic applications.