Highly efficient visible light photocatalysis of novel CuS/ZnO heterostructure nanowire arrays

Abstract

Here, a facile approach for the fabrication of CuS nanoparticle (NP)/ZnO nanowire (NW) heterostructures on a mesh substrate through a simple two-step solution method is demonstrated. Successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) was employed to uniformly deposit CuS NPs on the hydrothermally grown ZnO NW array. The synthesized CuS/ ZnO heterostructure NWs exhibited superior photocatalytic activity under visible light compared to bare ZnO NWs. This strong photocatalytic activity under visible light is due to the interfacial charge transfer (IFCT) from the valence band of the ZnO NW to the CuS NP, which reduces CuS to Cu2S. After repeated cycles of photodecolorization of Acid Orange 7 (AO7), the photocatalytic behavior of CuS/ ZnO heterostructure NWs exhibited no significant loss of activity. Furthermore, our CuS/ ZnO NWs/mesh photocatalyst floats in solution via partial superhydrophobic modification of the NWs.