Study on photocatalytic and impedance spectroscopy investigations of composite CuO/ZnO nanoparticles

Abstract

This paper reports the preparation of composite CuO/ZnO nanoparticles by facile precipitation route and their photocatalytic activity against organic dyes. The red shift caused in the UV–Vis absorption spectrum suggests the enhancement of visible light photocatalytic activity of the material. The collective vibrations of Cu–O and Zn–O in FTIR spectrum clearly illustrate the formation of composite CuO/ZnO nanoparticles. Powder XRD profile suggests the formation of highly crystalline material and the chemical states of the elements is investigated by XPS analysis. A slightly agglomerated cluster-like structure of the particles is visualized by SEM analysis and EDS mapping illustrates the homogeneous distribution of the sample, which is most favorable for the photocatalysis analysis. The photocatalytic activity of material is studied against degradation of Rhodamine B and Methylene blue dyes using simulated solar light irradiation. The dielectric analysis of the composite CuO/ZnO nanoparticles demonstrates the enhanced dielectric permittivity and low loss factor in comparison with pure CuO and ZnO nanoparticles.