Abstract

In the present study, a low-temperature process for the stabilization of Cu-ZrO2 nanocomposite has been designed. The synthesis of m-ZrO2 has been done via hydrothermal route followed by decoration of copper onto m-ZrO2 surface by chemical reduction of copper salt in ethylene glycol. The optical study of the Cu-ZrO2 nanocomposites shows that, as the concentration of copper increases, the bandgap of the nanocomposite decreases. Among the series of synthesized nanocomposites of Cu-ZrO2, the nanocomposite having 1:4 molar ratio of Cu: ZrO2 shows the excellent photo-degradation efficacy (degradation efficiency ∼94 %) in the visible light because of efficient charge separation as confirmed by spectroscopic techniques as well as kelvin probe force microscopic studies.

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