Nanographene toughens polymeric materials by forming long and highly oriented polymer
Graphene shows great advantages in developing optimised graphene-based materials thanks to its superb mechanical, optical, and electrical properties, especially its excellent electron mobility and high specific surface area. In a new study, researchers in Shanghai Jiao Tong University prepare cubic cuprous oxide-reduce graphene oxide (Cu
2O-RGO) nanocomposites by a facile and green in-situ synthesis. The nanocomposites demonstrate enhanced photocatalytic activity for methyl orange dye under visible light irradiation.
SEM image of cubic Cu2O-RGO nanocomposites
The cubic Cu2O-RGO nanocomposites is synthesized by a gentle one-pot method, in which the formation of Cu2O particles and the reduction of GO simultaneously take place and result in the tight and uniform distribution of cubic Cu2O particles on the surface of RGO nanosheets.
Excellent charge transport
The electron-hole pairs generate on cubic Cu2O particles under visible light. The introduction of RGO enables excellent charge transport which contributes to the effective separation of electrons and holes. Scavengers are introduced and h+ and O2- radicals are proved to be the prime reactive species in the photocatalytic process.
Low-cost nanocomposites
The research group believes such low-cost Cu2O-RGO nanocomposites hold great potential in exploitation of solar energy and are good alternatives to the noble metal (Au, Ag and Pt) in improving the photocatalytic ability of semiconductor-based photocatalysts.
