Advances in Materials Science and Engineering (Jan 2018)

Template-Free Synthesis of Star-Like ZrO2 Nanostructures and Their Application in Photocatalysis

  • Xue-Yu Tao,
  • Jie Ma,
  • Rui-Lin Hou,
  • Xiang-Zhu Song,
  • Lin Guo,
  • Shi-Xiang Zhou,
  • Li-Tong Guo,
  • Zhang-Sheng Liu,
  • He-Liang Fan,
  • Ya-Bo Zhu

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/8191095
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 2018

Abstract

Read online

Star-like nano-ZrO2 has been synthesized using Zr(NO3)4·5H2O as zirconium source by a hydrothermal process without any template and surfactant. The structure of the as-prepared ZrO2 powder was investigated by multiple advanced analytical methods. The results showed that CH3COO− and NO3− had great effects on the formation of star-like ZrO2 nanostructures. The as-prepared ZrO2 had a superior catalytic activity, and the reason for it was analyzed by UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The effect of raw material ratios on the photocatalytic property of ZrO2 was studied. The synthesized ZrO2 showed a narrow bandgap (3.50–3.85 eV) and an excellent photocatalytic activity, and the degradation of RhB was up to nearly 100% in 30 min with this photocatalyst.