Photocatalytic degradation of 4-nitrophenol by usingmulticomponent Cu2O-Cu@TiO2 nanoparticle aggregates

Abstract

Multicomponent nanomaterials with synergistic effect were typically used to enhance the photocatalytic performance. Herein, three-component nanomaterials composed of Cu2O, Cu, and TiO2 were prepared using a facile method, and applied in the photocatalytic degradation reactions. The synthetic procedure involves the formation of Cu2O nanoparticle aggregates (NPAs) followed by Cu nanoparticles growth on the surface of Cu2O NPAs in one pot, and TiO2 encapsulation (Cu2O-Cu@TiO2). The catalyst structure was characterized by x-ray diffraction, field emission-scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and energy-dispersed x-ray. The catalytic performance of Cu2O-Cu@TiO2 NPAs was evaluated through the photocatalytic degradation of 4-nitrophenol under the simulated solar light. We found that it exhibited greater activity than the Cu2O-Cu NPAs, commercial TiO2, and Cu2O@TiO2 NPAs, probably due to their synergistic interactions resulting in the effective photogenerated carrier transfer in the multicomponent nanomaterials.