Abstract
Copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO-NPs) powder and copper oxide thin films (CuO-TFs) have been studied to reveal their applicability in photodegradation. The CuO-TFs are found to be better photocatalysts as compared to powder form in the photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) dye solution. The photocatalytic effect of CuO-TFs (0.83 mg of deposited CuO), CuO-NPs powder (0.83 mg), and self-degradation of MB dye solution are found to be 83.91%, 52.40%, and 25.8% respectively. The FESEM images reveal that CuO-NPs are more prone to agglomeration than CuO-TFs. The average particle size of CuO-NPs and CuO-TFs are found to be 6.90 nm and 6.07 nm respectively. XPS analysis reveals lesser oxygen defects in CuO-TFs, which results in higher MB photodegradation activity as compared to CuO-NPs. The specific surface area of CuO-NPs and CuO-TFs are found to be 33.714 m2/g and 20.668 m2/g. The easy reusability and photocatalytic performance manifest CuO-TFs as better photocatalysts.
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