Te@cross-linked PVA core-shell structures synthesized by a one-step synergistic soft-hard template process

Recently, we proposed a simple, large-scale hydrothermal synthesis of flexible nanocables with silver as cores and cross-linked poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) as shells in which silver ions catalyzed the cross-linking of PVA chains under hydrothermal conditions and a so-called synergistic soft-hard template mechanism (SSHM) was proposed (Luo et al. J. Atli. Chem. Soc. 2005, 127, 2822-2823). In this paper, we extend this approach to examine whether high valent metal ions such as Te4+ also can be reduced under a similar reaction but using sodium tellurite and PVA as precursors. The results demonstrated that different tellurium/cross-linked PVA core-shell nanostructures such as a core-shell structure with nanorod bundles penetrated through a ball, branched cables, and separated cables can be synthesized. The influence of the concentration of PVA, reaction temperature, and reaction time on the formation of different nanostructures has been investigated. In addition, the detailed reaction and shape evolution process of core-shell structures have also been studied. The results suggested that the cross-linking of PVA also can occur in the presence of high valent metal ions besides noble metal ions, underlining that it is possible to access various core-shell structures with different inorganic components as cores by this approach.