Self-standing porous Au/CuO nanowires with remarkably enhanced visible light absorption and photocatalytic performance

Abstract

It is a great challenge to design a low-cost CuO photocatalyst with high utilization rate of visible light. Herein, a self-standing Au nanoparticles modified CuO nanowires on the nanoporous CuAu bimetal network (Au/CuO@NP-CuAu) with hierarchical porous structure was designed through facilely free-dealloying Cu35Zr60Au5 metallic glass (MG) ribbon followed by anodizing technique. The minor addition of Au significantly reduces the size of pore/ligament of the dealloyed product and changes the morphology of CuO nanowires. In addition, the Schottky junction constructed by Au nanoparticles and CuO nanowires efficiently reduces the recombination of photogenerated electrons (e-) and holes (h+). Moreover, the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect stemming from the Au nanoparticles is effective in increasing the visible light response and improving the utilization of visible light. The Au/CuO@NP-CuAu photocatalysts show outstanding degradation performance and excellent cycling stability for organic dyes. Furthermore, the comprehensive and in-depth understanding on photocatalytic degradation mechanism of RhB is investigated. The novel design of the self-standing Au/CuO@NP-CuAu hybrids facilitates the recycling use, which would largely extend commercial application prospects.