Kinetics of the water adsorption driven structural transformation of ZnS nanoparticles

Kinetics of the water adsorption driven structural transformation of ZnS nanoparticles Carmen M. Goodell 1 , Benjamin Gilbert 2, * , Steven J. Weigand 3 , Jillian F. Banfield 1, 2, * Earth and Planetary Science, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720 Earth Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720 DND-CAT Synchrotron Research Center, Northwestern University, APS/ANL Argonne, IL 60439 To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: bgilbert@lbl.gov; jbanfield@berkeley.edu RECEIVED DATE Abstract Nanoparticles of certain materials can respond structurally to changes in their surface environments. We have previously shown that methanol, water adsorption, and aggregation-disaggregation can change the structure of 3 nm diameter zinc sulfide (ZnS). However, in prior observations of water-driven structure change, aggregation may also have taken place. Therefore, we investigated the structural consequences of water