Ceria Nanotube Formed by Sacrificed Precursors Template through Oswald Ripening

Controllable preparation of ceria nanotube was realized by hydrothermal treatment of Ce(OH)CO3 precursors. The gradually changing morphologies and microstructures of cerium oxide were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A top-down path is illuminated to have an insight to the morphological transformation from nanorod to nanotube by adjusting the reaction time. The growth process is investigated by preparing a series of intermediate morphologies during the shape evolution of CeO2 nanostructure based on the scanning electron microscopy image observation. On the basis of the time-dependent experimental observation, the possible formation mechanism related to oriented attachment and Oswald ripening was proposed, which might afford some guidance for the synthesis of other inorganic nanotubes.