Abstract
Boron-doped nanocrystalline diamond amorphous carbon composite (NCD/a-C) films were fabricated by coaxial arc plasma deposition (CAPD). Electrical conductivity measurements and thermal analysis confirmed that the deposited films exhibited p-type semiconductor behavior. Cyclic voltammetry measurements of deposited films showed a wide electrical potential window and an extremely low background current. 4-Nitrophenol (4-NP) aqueous solution, which is a recalcitrant substance, was decomposed via electrolytic treatment using a batch-type electrolytic treatment system wherein the B-doped NCD/a-C films were used as anodes. UV-vis spectra showed that the absorbance of 4-NP at 400 nm decreased with increasing electrolytic treatment time. This behavior implies that the B-doped NCD/a-C films deposited by CAPD are potential electrode materials for use in the electrolytic degradation of recalcitrant substances.
Highlights
Boron-doped diamond (BDD) films have attracted much attention as electrode materials for wastewater treatment[1,2] because of their superior chemical characteristics, which include a wide potential window, extremely low background current, and high chemical stability in various solutions
If the electrolytic treatment performance of B-doped nanocrystalline diamond/amorphous carbon composite (NCD/a-C) films prepared by coaxial arc plasma deposition (CAPD) is similar to that of BDD electrodes, they will be attractive as new high-performance electrodes for electrolytic treatment
The potential window and background current were measured by cyclic voltammetry (CV) with the electrodes immersed in an electrolytic solution of aqueous 1.0 mol/L H2SO4
Summary
Boron-doped diamond (BDD) films have attracted much attention as electrode materials for wastewater treatment[1,2] because of their superior chemical characteristics, which include a wide potential window, extremely low background current, and high chemical stability in various solutions. The superior mechanical, physical, and chemical characteristics of these films are assumed to be a consequence of NCDs and UNCDs in an a-C or a-C:H matrix existing as diamond crystallites Such films are fabricated by CVD[10,12,13,14]. We used coaxial arc plasma deposition (CAPD), which is a PVD method, to grow UNCD/a-C and NCD/a-C films; we successfully fabricated UNCD/a-C films with diamond crystallite diameters of approximately 1.5 nm at a substrate temperature of room temperature under vacuum using our previously reported method[16]. We grew B-doped UNCD/a-C films by CAPD at room temperature under vacuum and confirmed that these films exhibit two superior electrochemical characteristics similar to those of commercially available BDD electrodes: a wide potential window and an extremely low background current[21]. If the electrolytic treatment performance of B-doped NCD/a-C films prepared by CAPD is similar to that of BDD electrodes, they will be attractive as new high-performance electrodes for electrolytic treatment
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