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Synthesis and characterization of ZnO-doped cupric oxides and evaluation of their photocatalytic performance under visible light

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Abstract

ZnO–CuO binary oxide photocatalysts were synthesized by the liquid phase coprecipitation method. The catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and UV–vis spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity of the ZnO–CuO nanocomposites was estimated on the basis of decoloration of methyl orange dye under visible light. The effects of parameters such as calcining temperature, amount of catalyst and pH on the photocatalytic degradation efficiency of methyl orange solutions were investigated in detail. The maximum photocatalytic activity was obtained on ZnO–CuO nanocomposites with a calcining temperature of 350 °C, using a catalyst amount of 0.056 g/L and a pH of 7.5. The visible light-driven capability of ZnO–CuO nanocomposites is much better than that of commercially available TiO2 photocatalysts under comparable conditions.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities and Huazhong Agricultural University Scientific & Technological Self-innovation Foundation (2009QC016).

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  1. College of Science, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China

    Dongfang Zhang

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  1. Dongfang Zhang
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Correspondence to Dongfang Zhang.

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Zhang, D. Synthesis and characterization of ZnO-doped cupric oxides and evaluation of their photocatalytic performance under visible light. Transition Met Chem 35, 689–694 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11243-010-9380-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11243-010-9380-z

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