Doping of Zinc Oxide with Selected First Row Transition Metals for Photocatalytic Applications

Abstract

ZnO doped with Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni and Cu was prepared by homogeneous hydrolysis of sulfates with urea. The samples were annealed at various temperatures and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, UV/VIS reflectance spectroscopy, BET (Brunauer-Emmet-Teller) surface area and porosity measurements. The photocatalytic activity of the samples was evaluated by measuring the degradation of an organic dye Reactive Black 5. The morphology of the samples was determined by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. For the Cu-doped ZnO sample, EPR spectra were obtained. All samples annealed at 800°C contained hexagonal ZnO. In the VIS region, the best photocatalytic performance had the ZnO samples doped with Cr, Fe and Cu.

Mn-Doped ZnSe Quantum Dots as Fluorimetric Mercury Sensor

“…A number of techniques have been used to improve the particle stability, PL efficiency and biocompatibility of the QDs. These include photo-irradiation [35,36], ultrasonic irradiation [37], doping with transition metals [38][39][40] and inorganic passivation [41]. Among them, inorganic passivation and doping techniques are the most widely investigated.…”

Photocatalytic performance of ZnO carbon composites for the degradation of methyl orange dye

“…tried various methodologies which include, doping ZnO with various transition metals [18], forming nanostructures of ZnO with diverse morphology [19,20] as well as forming its hybrid composites [21][22][23]. Above all hybrid composites synthesized using various carbon allotropes are marked to be very promising and hence received special attention [24][25][26].…”

Electrochemical and Dip‐Coating Synthesis of Dendritic Cu/CuI Nanowire Films and Their Application in Dye Degradation Under UV Irradiation

“…[12][13][14][15][16] The incorporation of NPs, metal nanorods, and metal nanowires (NWs) of noble metals (Pt, Au, Cu and Ag) increases the lifetime of charge separation in the semiconductor, transfers photogenerated electrons across the interfaces, and amplifies visible-light absorption. [17][18][19][20][21][22] Among these noble metals, Cu is one of the most important due to its low cost, high abundance and high electrical conductivity. [23][24][25][26] Cu/TiO 2 , [27][28][29][30][31] Cu/Cu 2 O, [13,32] and Cu/ZnO [14,33] nanocomposites have been reported to enhance the photocatalytic activity of Cu in the degradation of organic pollutants.…”

“…Noble metal/semiconductor composites are also promising functional nanomaterials for improving the photocatalytic efficiency of semiconductors . The incorporation of NPs, metal nanorods, and metal nanowires (NWs) of noble metals (Pt, Au, Cu and Ag) increases the lifetime of charge separation in the semiconductor, transfers photogenerated electrons across the interfaces, and amplifies visible‐light absorption . Among these noble metals, Cu is one of the most important due to its low cost, high abundance and high electrical conductivity .…”