A new synthesis of Cu2O spherical particles for the degradation of methylene blue dye

Abstract

In this paper, cuprous oxide nanoparticles (Cu2ONPs) were synthesized using sodium borohydride as a reducing agent and Origanum vulgare leaf extract as an oxidizing agent. The experimental reaction was conducted at room temperature. Moreover, the catalytic activity of Cu2ONPs was evaluated in the presence of methylene blue (MB) dye. The nanoparticles were characterized using Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV–vis), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The UV–vis spectra exhibit surface plasmón resonance bands that confirm the presence of Cu2ONPs. The XRD reflections of the obtained solids were indexed according to the cubic structure of Cu2O. SEM and TEM analysis reveal particles with a spherical morphology ranging in size from 60 to 120 nm with an average size of 90 nm. The experimental results showed that the Cu2ONPs are a useful material for the degradation of MB dye after 80 min in the absence of any catalyzer (i.e.NaBH4) during reaction.