A simple photolytic reactor employing Ag-doped ZnO nanowires for water purification

作者：Udom Innocent; Zhang Yangyang; Ram Manoj K^*; Stefanakos Elias K; Hepp Aloysius F; Elzein Radwan; Schlaf Rudy; Goswami D Yogi

来源：Thin Solid Films, 2014, 564: 258-263.

DOI：10.1016/j.tsf.2014.05.057

• Silver
• Zinc oxide
• Nanowires
• Photoreactor
• Water Purification

Well-aligned native zinc oxide (ZnO) and silver-doped ZnO (Ag-ZnO) films were deposited on borosilicate glass via a simple, low-cost, low-temperature, scalable hydrothermal process. The as-synthesized ZnO and Ag-ZnO films were characterized by X-ray diffraction; scanning electron microscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. A simple photolytic reactor was fabricated and later used to find the optimum experimental conditions for photocatalytic performance. The photodegradation of methyl orange in water was investigated using as-prepared ZnO and Ag-ZnO nanowires, and was compared to P25 (a commercial photocatalyst) in both visible and UV radiations. The P25 and Ag-ZnO showed a similar photodegradation performance under UV light, but Ag-ZnO demonstrated superior photocatalytic activity under visible irradiation. The optimized doping of Ag in Ag-ZnO enhanced photocatalytic activity in a simple reactor design and indicated potential applicability of Ag-ZnO for large-scale purification of water under solar irradiation.

• 出版日期2014-8-1