The structure and photocatalytic performances of mechanically synthesized poly(3′,4′‐ethylenedioxy‐2,2′:5′,2″‐Terthiophene)/Zno composites

Abstract

Poly(3 0 ,4 0 -ethylenedioxy-2,2 0 :5 0 ,2 00 -terthiophene)/ZnO(poly(TET)/ZnO) composites with the ratio of poly(TET) and nano-ZnO from 3:1 to 1:3 were synthesized by hand grinding and ball milling methods, respectively. The photocatalytic activities of the composites were examined through the degradation processes of methylene blue (MB) solution under UV light irradiation, and the possible mechanism for the photocatalytic activity enhancement by synergetic effects between nano-ZnO and poly(TET) was proposed. The results showed that the strong interactions between the poly(TET) and nano-ZnO occurred in the case of ball milling method. The results also proved that the crystallinity of ZnO was not disturbed in both of methods, and the nano-ZnO was uniformly distributed in polymer matrix in the case of ball milling method. The comparative studies showed that the addition of the nano-ZnO could enhance the photocatalytic activities of the composites. The highest degradation efficiency (100%) at 3 h under UV light irradiation occurred in the case of poly(TET)/ZnO(1:1) synthesized by ball milling method. Furthermore, the nanocompsosite displayed higher photocatalytic activity than nano-ZnO, which was due to the holes (h 1 ) transferring from the valence band of ZnO to the polymer backbone and the adsorption of MB molecules in polymer matrix via p-p conjugation between MB and aromatic regions of the poly(TET). POLYM. COMPOS., 36:1597-1605

Novel bio-solar hybrid photoelectrochemical synthesis for selective hydrogen peroxide production

“…26,29 The intensely strong peak at 785 cm −1 , as well as a weaker characteristic peak at 832 cm −1 , indicated that the TTh monomer was successfully polymerized and the coupling reactions occurred at the C α , C α′ positions. 27,30,31 As shown in Fig. 1a, a blood-orange fluffy layer formed on the GP, and the color of the layer gradually changed from orange-yellow to orange-brown when increasing the number of electrodeposition cycles and thereby increasing the layer thickness.…”

“…The characteristic peaks of the aromatic ring-stretching vibrations appeared at 1352, 1425, 1440 and 1492 cm −1 . [25][26][27] Vibrations at 922 and 686 cm −1 originated from the stretching of the C-S bond in the thiophene ring. 27,28 The peaks observed at 3062 and 1069 cm −1 corresponded to the stretching vibration and inplane bending vibration of C β -H in the thiophene ring, respectively.…”

“…[25][26][27] Vibrations at 922 and 686 cm −1 originated from the stretching of the C-S bond in the thiophene ring. 27,28 The peaks observed at 3062 and 1069 cm −1 corresponded to the stretching vibration and inplane bending vibration of C β -H in the thiophene ring, respectively. 26,29 The intensely strong peak at 785 cm −1 , as well as a weaker characteristic peak at 832 cm −1 , indicated that the TTh monomer was successfully polymerized and the coupling reactions occurred at the C α , C α′ positions.…”

Poly(vinylidene fluoride‐hexafluoropropylene)/mesoporous graphitic carbon nitride composite membranes for photocatalytic methylene blue degradation and sensing applications

“…However, due to the accessibility and simplicity of catalytic materials, photocatalytic degradation has garnered considerable interest. [35][36][37][38][39] The extensively used nano-catalysts are Cu, 40,41 CdS, 42,43 ZnO, 44,45 32,[51][52][53][54] or its composites. 55 Compared to other polymetric semiconductor photocatalysts, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ) has the highest band gap of 2.7 eV, which works under visible light to degrade organic pollutants.…”

“…However, due to the accessibility and simplicity of catalytic materials, photocatalytic degradation has garnered considerable interest 35–39 . The extensively used nano‐catalysts are Cu, 40,41 CdS, 42,43 ZnO, 44,45 TiO 2, 33,46–48 SnO 2, 49 and ZrO 2, 50 polymer‐based catalyst 32,51–54 or its composites 55 …”