Well-organized assembly of ZnO hollow cages and their derived Ag/ZnO composites with enhanced photocatalytic property

Abstract

Unique and controllable well-organized ZnO hollow cages were formed for the first time by smart assembly using novel combination of L-TA and EA, which can produce a strong synergistic effect in hydrothermal process. Meanwhile, the conformation of L-TA and D-TA shows that these ZnO cages have special spatial assembly order. The photocatalytic activity of Ag/ZnO is remarkably larger than that of pristine ZnO (S2) under UV or simulated sunlight irradiation. The MB rate constant k values of Ag/ZnO composites are larger than those of P25 under UV light illumination. Under simulated sunlight irradiation, S2-10% Ag/ZnO degrades 80% of RhB in 135 min. The PL, photocurrent and EIS results indicate enhanced photocatalytic performance due to the interfacial formation between Ag and ZnO, which facilitates the separation and transfer of photoinduced carriers and enhances the photocatalytic activity of Ag/ZnO composites. This work provided a new way to design and construct well-organized ZnO hollow cages and their derived Ag/ZnO photocatalysts.