Dye-Assisted Transformation of Cu2O Nanocrystal to Amorphous CuxO Nano Flake for Enhanced Photocatalytic Performance


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Authors
Su, Y 
Wang, H 
Robertson, J 
Abstract

Amorphous CuxO nano flakes with a thickness of 10 to 50 nm were synthesized through the dye-assisted transformation of rhombic dodecahedral Cu2O nanocrystals using facile solution process. The morphology evolution observed by electron microscopy is highly dependent on the reaction between the surface and the dye. The crystal grain shrinks during the process until the formation of a purely amorphous nano flake. The amorphous CuxO nano flake consists of a combination of Cu(I) and Cu(II) with a ratio close to 1:1. It shows enhanced photocatalytic reactivity towards the degradation of methyl orange as compared to rhombic dodecahedral Cu2O nanocrystals with all active (110):Cu facets. The chemical composition and architecture remain the same after repeating degradation tests. The high surface-to-volume ratio contributes to its superior photocatalytic performance while its low surface energy, confirmed by density functional theory simulations, explains its improved stability. The nano flakes also shows the ability to degrade nitrobenzene effectively, thus demonstrating great promise as a highly stable and active photocatalyst for environmental applications.

Description
Keywords
Cu2O, CuxO, nano flake, amorphous, stability, photocatalytic reactivity
Journal Title
ACS Omega
Conference Name
Journal ISSN
2470-1343
2470-1343
Volume Title
3
Publisher
American Chemical Society
Sponsorship
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/M013650/1)
This work was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council under Project EP/M013650/1.