Radiolytic syntheses of hollow UO2 nanospheres in Triton X-100-based lyotropic liquid crystals

Hollow nanospheres (phi: 60-80 nm, wall thickness: 10-20 nm), consisted of UO2 nanoparticles (phi: 3-5 nm), were successfully prepared in a Triton X-100-water (50 : 50, w/w) hexagonal lyotropic liquid crystal (LLC) by gamma-irradiation, where water soluble ammonium uranyl tricarbonate was added as precursor. The product was stable at least up to 300 degrees C. Furthermore, whether the nanospheres were hollow or not, and the wall thickness of the hollow nanospheres could be easily controlled via adjusting dose rate. While in the Triton X-100 based micellar systems, only solid nanospheres were obtained. At last, a possible combination mechanism containing adsorption, aggregation and fracturing processes was proposed.