Polyacrylamide gel synthesis and photocatalytic performance of CuCo2O4 nanoparticles

Abstract

The phase-pure and well-dispersed CuCo2O4 nanoparticles (NPs) were designed and fabricated for the first time using a simple and inexpensive polyacrylamide gel method. The crystal structure, morphology and optical property of the CuCo2O4 NPs were characterized by various instruments in detail. X-ray diffractometry (XRD) patterns show that the pure phase of CuCo2O4. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images reveal that the CuCo2O4 NPs have size distribution in the range of 50–200 nm. Photocatalytic degradation experiments show that the CuCo2O4 NPs possess superior photocatalytic activity and stability to degrade oxytetracycline hydrochloride (OTCH) under visible illumination. In addition, the active species trapping experiments confirm that the hydroxyl radicals (OH) and holes (h+) play the major role in the degradation of OTCH by CuCo2O4 NPs. Additionally, according to the analysis of the experimental results, a possible photocatalytic mechanism was discussed.