Structural, electrochemical sensor and photocatalytic activity of combustion synthesized of novel ZnO doped CuO NPs

Abstract

The solution combustion approach was used to synthesize the CuO-doped ZnO (CuO@ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs) from pure CuO at various concentrations of 5, 10, and 15%. Electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques were used to identify the production and structural studies of CuO@ZnO NPs (SEM). For the (111) strong peak, the average crystallite size was determined and was shown to decrease as the concentration of CuO increased. Kubelka-Munk theory was used to determine the optical band gap (Eg) of CuO@ ZnO NPs. The Eg values were found to be 2.6, 2.3, 2.20, and 2.16 eV for pure CuO, 5, 10, and 15 wt.% CuO@ZnO NPs, respectively. This corroborates that the optical band gap reduces with increasing the CuO atoms in the ZnO lattice. Under visible light illumination, the direct green (DG) and fast blue (FB) decolorization methods were used to estimate the photocatalytic performance of CuO with 10%ZnO NPs. These NPs' photocatalytic capabilities can be utilized in environmental applications to purify water. Electrochemical analysis using cyclic voltammetry revealed an improved redox potential output in the electrode crafted with graphite powder in 0.1 N HCl electrolyte solution. These CuO@ZnO electrodes were used because of their capacity to detect an extremely dangerous chemical like arsenic.

Recent advances in the synthesis of ZnO-based electrochemical sensors

“…The performance of sensors improved with clay/ZnO nanocomposite has been enhanced in experiments in 0.1 M KOH for uric acid, resorcinol, and ascorbic acid, indicating the prospect of the clay/ZnO system usage in real-world sensing usages. In another study by Rudresha and coworkers [56], the flash combustion method was employed to fabricate doped CuO-ZnO nanoparticles. Copper (II) nitrate and zinc nitrate ground in citric acid were placed in the porcelain crucible as raw materials.…”