Microbundles of zinc oxide nanorods: Assembly in ionic liquid [EMIM]+[BF4]−, photoluminescence and photocatalytic properties

A simple, efficient and low-temperature approach for the assembly of hierarchical Zinc oxide (ZnO) microstructures in ionic liquid [EMIM]+[BF4]− is reported. The as-obtained ZnO superstructures are composed of microbundles of nanorods from the center points, with the diameter and length in the range of 100–150 nm and 2–4 μm, which have been characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The ZnO microstructures exhibit significant defect-related green-yellow emission and high photodegradation of dye Methyl Orange (5×10−5 mol/L) under UV excitation within 80 min.