Abstract
Three-dimensional CuS hierarchical crystals with high catalytic activity had been successfully fabricated using a facile solvothermal process. The CuS microparticles showed different flower-like morphology and good dispersion by optimizing reaction conditions. It was found that using N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) as the solvent reagent in the proper temperature conditions was favorable for the growth of hierarchically structured CuS. The hexagonal flower-like CuS synthesized at 170°C for 60 min displayed broad-spectrum photocatalytic properties under ultraviolet (UV) and visible irradiation. The as-prepared CuS crystals exhibited good performance to decolorize methylene blue (MB) solution under visible light irradiation. The total organic carbon (TOC) removal of rhodamine B (RhB) solution was nearly 60% after 5 h of the natural sunlight irradiation, and the property was stable after testing over four recycles, demonstrating a potential application in waster water treatment.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Explore related subjects
Discover the latest articles, news and stories from top researchers in related subjects.Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Armor J N. A history of industrial catalysis. Catalysis Today, 2011, 163(1): 3–9
Kim S D, Cho J, Kim I S, et al. Occurrence and removal of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disruptors in South Korean surface, drinking, and waste waters. Water Research, 2007, 41 (5): 1013–1021
Zhang N, Yang M Q, Tang Z R, et al. Toward improving the graphene-semiconductor composite photoactivity via the addition of metal ions as generic interfacial mediator. ACS Nano, 2014, 8 (1): 623–633
Guo W, Zhang F, Lin C, et al. Direct growth of TiO2 nanosheet arrays on carbon fibers for highly efficient photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange. Advanced Materials, 2012, 24 (35): 4761–4764
Fan Z, Zhang X, Yang J, et al. Synthesis of 4H/fcc-Au@metal sulfide core–shell nanoribbons. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2015, 137(34): 10910–10913
Gao W W, Liu W X, Leng Y H, et al. In2S3 nanomaterial as a broadband spectrum photocatalyst to display significant activity. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 2015, 176–177: 83–90
Xu X J, Hu L F, Gao N, et al. Controlled growth from ZnS nanoparticles to ZnS–CdS nanoparticle hybrids with enhanced photoactivity. Advanced Functional Materials, 2015, 25(3): 445–454
Han S C, Hu L F, Gao N, et al. Efficient self-assembly synthesis of uniform CdS spherical nanoparticles-Au nanoparticles hybrids with enhanced photoactivity. Advanced Functional Materials, 2014, 24(24): 3725–3733
Wang X, Maeda K, Thomas A, et al. A metal-free polymeric photocatalyst for hydrogen production from water under visible light. Nature Materials, 2009, 8(1): 76–80
Zheng Y, Lin L, Ye X, et al. Helical graphitic carbon nitrides with photocatalytic and optical activities. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2014, 53(44): 11926–11930
Han C C, Wu L N, Ge L, et al. AuPd bimetallic nanoparticles decorated raphitic carbon nitride for highly efficient reduction of water to H2 under visible light irradiation. Carbon, 2015, 92: 31–40
Li Y, Shen W. Morphology-dependent nanocatalysts: rod-shaped oxides. Chemical Society Reviews, 2014, 43(5): 1543–1574
Zhang J, Bang J H, Tang C, et al. Tailored TiO2–SrTiO3 heterostructure nanotube arrays for improved photoelectrochemical performance. ACS Nano, 2010, 4(1): 387–395
Liu S, Tang Z R, Sun Y, et al. One-dimension-based spatially ordered architectures for solar energy conversion. Chemical Society Reviews, 2015, 44(15): 5053–5075
Liu R P, Ren F, Yang J L, et al. One-step synthesis of hierarchically porous hybrid TiO2 hollow spheres with high photocatalytic activity. Frontiers of Materials Science, 2016, 10 (1): 15–22
Zheng L, Han S, Liu H, et al. Hierarchical MoS2 nanosheet@TiO2 nanotube array composites with enhanced photocatalytic and photocurrent performances. Small, 2016, 12(11): 1527–1536
Wang X, Zhuang J, Peng Q, et al. A general strategy for nanocrystal synthesis. Nature, 2005, 437(7055): 121–124
Li X, He X, Shi C, et al. Synthesis of one-dimensional copper sulfide nanorods as high-performance anode in lithium ion batteries. ChemSusChem, 2014, 7(12): 3328–3333
Zhang J, Yu J, Zhang Y, et al. Visible light photocatalytic H2- production activity of CuS/ZnS porous nanosheets based on photoinduced interfacial charge transfer. Nano Letters, 2011, 11 (11): 4774–4779
Han Y, Wang Y P, Gao W H, et al. Synthesis of novel CuS with hierarchical structures and its application in lithium-ion batteries. Powder Technology, 2011, 212(1): 64–68
Goel S, Chen F, Cai W. Synthesis and biomedical applications of copper sulfide nanoparticles: from sensors to theranostics. Small, 2014, 10(4): 631–645
Cheng Z G, Wang S Z, Wang Q, et al. A facile solution chemical route to self-assembly of CuS ball-flowers and their application as an efficient photocatalyst. CrystEngComm, 2010, 12(1): 144–149
Xu H L,WangWZ, Zhu W. Sonochemical synthesis of crystalline CuS nanoplates via an in situ template route. Materials Letters, 2006, 60(17-18): 2203–2206
Du W, Qian X, Ma X, et al. Shape-controlled synthesis and selfassembly of hexagonal covellite (CuS) nanoplatelets. Chemistry - A European Journal, 2007, 13(11): 3241–3247
Shu Q W, Lan J, Gao M X, et al. Controlled synthesis of CuS caved superstructures and their application to the catalysis of organic dye degradation in the absence of light. CrystEngComm, 2015, 17(6): 1374–1380
Kumar V V, Hariharan P S, Eniyavan D, et al. Alanine based coordinating ligand mediated hydrothermal synthesis of CuS nano/microstructures and morphology dependent photocatalysis. CrystEngComm, 2015, 17(18): 3452–3459
Tanveer M, Cao C B, Aslam I, et al. Synthesis of CuS flowers exhibiting versatile photo-catalyst response. New Journal of Chemistry, 2015, 39(2): 1459–1468
Zhang Y Q, Zhang B P, Ge Z H, et al. Preparation by solvothermal synthesis, growth mechanism, and photocatalytic performance of CuS nanopowders. European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 2014, 2014(14): 2368–2375
Mi L, Wei W, Zheng Z, et al. Tunable properties induced by ion exchange in multilayer intertwined CuS microflowers with hierarchal structures. Nanoscale, 2013, 5(14): 6589–6598
Saranya M, Ramachandran R, Samuel E J J, et al. Enhanced visible light photocatalytic reduction of organic pollutant and electrochemical properties of CuS catalyst. Powder Technology, 2015, 279: 209–220
Hosseinpour Z, Alemi A, Khandar A A, et al. A controlled solvothermal synthesis of CuS hierarchical structures and their natural-light-induced photocatalytic properties. New Journal of Chemistry, 2015, 39(7): 5470–5476
Li F, Wu J, Qin Q, et al. Controllable synthesis, optical and photocatalytic properties of CuS nanomaterials with hierarchical structures. Powder Technology, 2010, 198(2): 267–274
Yang Z K, Song L X, Teng Y, et al. Ethylenediamine-modulated synthesis of highly monodisperse copper sulfide microflowers with excellent photocatalytic performance. Journal of Materials Chemistry A: Materials for Energy and Sustainability, 2014, 2 (47): 20004–20009
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Zhao, W., Wang, Z., Zhou, L. et al. Natural sunlight irradiated flower-like CuS synthesized from DMF solvothermal treatment. Front. Mater. Sci. 10, 290–299 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11706-016-0349-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11706-016-0349-5