Controlled Synthesis And Photocatalytic Activity Of Cuprous Oxides

In this thesis, the synthesis and property of Cu2O were investigated. Cuprous oxide (Cu2O) nanoparticles and microcubes have been successfully fabricated by solution-phase reducing method. The mechanism of the formation of different morphology of cuprous oxide was discussed. Novel Cu2O nanospheres were prepared by hydrothermal treatment. Moreover, the Cu2O-WO3 and Cu2O-ZnO particles were prepared successfully. The properties of as-synthessized products were discussed. The details are summarized as follows:1. Cuprous oxide (Cu2O) nanoparticles and microcubes have been successfully fabricated by reduce of CUSO4 using ascorbic acid at room temperature. The synthesis of Cu2O was simple. There were no template or surfactant has been introduced. It suggested that OH- have effects on stability of{100} which lead to morphology of cubic. All of the samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR). The band gaps of as-prepared products were determined by UV-vis absorption spectra, the band gap of cuprous oxide microcubes was lower. The photocatalytic activities of as-synthesized Cu2O nanoparticles and microcubes for dyes were studied. The effects of different conditions on decoloration rate of dyes were discussed. Moreover, the photoluminescence properties of the products were investigated.2. Novel Cu2O nanospheres were prepared by hydrothermal treatment. The products were characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emitted scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). The photocatalytic activities of as-synthesized Cu2O nanospheres for methyl orange were studied. The decoloration rate of methyl orange in as-synthesized Cu2O nanospheres system was 89.0%. In the Cu2O/Fenton composite system, the decoloration rate of methyl orange could reach 98.1%. The photocatalytic degradation mechanism of Cu2O for methyl orange was suggested. Moreover, the antibacterial performance of Cu2O was studied as well. The result suggested Cu2O have good antibacterial performance for staphylococcus and E. coli.3. Cu2O-WO3 and Cu20-ZnO complexes were successfully fabricated by solution-phase reducing method. The products were characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD). The photocatalytic activities of as-synthesized complexes for methylene blue were studied. It was found that as-synthesized complexes have higher photocatalytic activity than Cu2O. Moreover, photocatalytic degradation mechanism of the complexes for methylene blue was discussed.