Controlled Synthesis And Properties Of Copper-Based Nanomaterlals

Copper-based nanomaterials generally contain Cu, Cu2O, CuO, and the corresponding composites. In recent years, copper-based nanomaterials become one of the hot research issues in the field of material science due to their intrinsic properties and wide applications in the fields of catalysis, sensors, and so on. Because the performance of nanomaterials largely depends on their size, morphology, and composition, controlled synthesis have been the continuous hotspot research of nanomaterial. Exploring synthetic routes should be a key precondition to reveal the relationship between the structures and properties, and then to develop low-cost materials but with good performance. The main contents of the paper are listed below:Due to its intrinsic structure and characteristics, size and size distribution control of Cu2O in aqueous media is a challenge, while a smaller size means a larger specific surface area, and thus has a higher catalytic activity. Here, we use heterogeneous nucleation to separate it from crystal growth, with gold nanorods as seeds to realize subsequent uniform crystal growth. Size of the products can be finely tuned and predicted just by adjusting the volume of the seed solution used. Meanwhile, taking use of surfactants and reducing agents, the shape of the product can also be effectively regulated. All the obtained products had remarkable photocatalytic performance for MO degradation, due to improved charge separation from the core-shell interaction and decreased size.Under proper conditions, employing the reactions between Au@Cu20templates and sulfur powder, thiourea and sodium sulphide, copper sulfide nanostructures with different morphology were prepared. At the same time, composite of copper oxide and manganese oxide can also be synthesized through the redox reaction with the potassium permanganate.CuO/rGO, Cu2O/rGO, and Cu/rGO were fabricated through the combination of solid reactions and solution routes. All of them showed good catalytic performance toward cyclooctene epoxidation. And the behaviors were also investigated when they were used as electrochemical glucose sensors.