Photocatalytic properties of hierarchical CuO nanosheets synthesized by a solution phase method
Martha Purnachander Rao , Jerry J. Wu , Abdullah M. Asiri , Sambandam Anandan , Muthupandian Ashokkumar
DOI:10.1016/j.jes.2017.05.005
Received January 23, 2017,Revised January 01, 1900, Accepted May 03, 2017, Available online May 10, 2017
Volume 30,2018,Pages 115-124
CuO nanomaterials were synthesized by a simple solution phase method using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as a surfactant and their photocatalytic property was determined towards the visible-light assisted degradation of Reactive Black-5 dye. A detailed mechanism for the formation of CuO nanostructures has been proposed. The effect of various experimental parameters such as catalyst amount, dye concentration, pH and oxidizing agent on the dye degradation efficiency was studied. About 87% dye was degraded at pH 2 in the presence of CuO nanosheets under visible light. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of CuO nanosheets can be ascribed to good crystallinity, grain size, surface morphology and a strong absorption in the visible region. CuO is found to be a promising catalyst for industrial waste water treatment.
