Abstract
Recently, heterogeneous structured semiconductor photocatalysts have received significant interest in promoting global cleaning from the environmental pollution. Herein, we report the synthesis of graphene oxide (GO) wrapped zinc oxide (ZnO) core–shell nanofibers (ZnO@G CSNFs) by the simple core–shell electrospinning and subsequent annealing for efficient photocatalytic performance and stability. The heterostructured catalyst consisted of ZnO forming an enclosed core part while the GO was positioned on the surface, serving as a protective shell. Field emission scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction were used to confirm the synthesis of the desired product. Enhanced photocatalytic activity ZnO@G CSNFs was found compared to the corresponding ZnO NFs. Similarly, incorporation of GO into the ZnO nanofiber in a core–shell format significantly suppressed the photocorrosion. This study highlights the usefulness of using GO as the coating material to boost the photocatalytic performance of ZnO-based photocatalysts.
Highlights
At a global scale, environmental pollution has become a major problem, as current levels may already exceed globally sustainable limits
The results show the zinc oxide (ZnO)@G CSNFs were well stable for extended cycles, unlike the ZnO@G2 and ZnO Nanofibers (ZnO NFs), for which photocatalytic activity was reduced from 76% to 68% and 68% to 55%, respectively, between the first and third cycles
The as-synthesized nanofibers consisted of pure ZnO as a core-forming material, while graphene was located on the surface of ZnO as a protective shell
Summary
Environmental pollution has become a major problem, as current levels may already exceed globally sustainable limits. Electrospinning is a cost-efficient and simple technique for fabricating network-like fibrous sheets that have been studied in many fields because of their high specific surface area and mesoporous structure. These fibers have been used as the template for the synthesis of fiber-type material [42,43]. The photocatalysis performance of fibrous samples containing photocatalytic compounds can be severely hampered due to bulky support materials, which do not show photocatalytic property In this scenario, removing the fiber as a template results in the synthesis of pure photocatalysts as a self-supported material in a fiber form. The graphene as a shell played a role in enhancing the performance by preventing photocorrosion
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