Synthesis of ZnS Microspheres by Template-Free Hydrothermal Method for Photocatalytic Reaction

In this work, ZnS microspheres consisting of nanoblocks were synthesized by a simple, template-free approach employing a hydrothermal reaction at different temperatures, using Zn(CH3COO)2 and Na2S2O3 · 5H2O as starting materials in the aqueous solution. The synthesized samples were characterized using field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET). The photocatalysts were evaluated using photodecomposition of methylene blue under UV-C light. The photocatalytic degradation rate followed a pseudo-first-order equation. The kinetic constant (k1) of the ZnS microspheres was 5.43 x 10(-2) min(-1).