Abstract
A novel and simple perturbation-assisted nanofusion (PNF) synthetic strategy was developed for the synthesis of stable hierarchically superstructured metal sulfides with controlled morphology. This promising approach is based on a kinetically controlled precipitation to simultaneously condense and re-dissolve polymorphic nanocrystallites, and provides the resultant samples with a unique mesoporous framework. The PNF approach is environmentally friendly, produces gram-scale products in a matter of hours, and is complimentary to the traditional hard or soft templating methods for the construction of mesoporous metal sulfides. PNF-derived hierarchical porous CdS exhibited a vastly improved photocatalytic performance over its commercial bulk counterparts under visible light irradiation, demonstrating the advantage of the porous morphology for photocatalysis resulting from the enlarged surface area and the easy accessibility of the mesopores.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1104-1110 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | ChemNanoMat |
Volume | 2 |
Issue number | 12 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Dec 2016 |
Funding
This research was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences Division, under Contract No. DE-AC05-00OR22725 with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which is managed and operated by UT-Battelle, LLC. M.K.K conducted solid UV/Vis experiments. EM experiments (J.C. and D.K.H.) experiments were conducted at the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, which is a DOE Office of Science User Facility, Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences, Scientific User Facility Division. Photocatalytic properties testing (YL, MPP) and small angle X-ray scattering (CB) were supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences, Materials Science and Engineering Division.
Keywords
- hierarchical superstructure
- mesopores
- metal sulfide
- perturbation-assisted nanofusion
- photocatalysis