10th International Aerosol Conference
September 2 - September 7, 2018
America's Center Convention Complex
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Abstract View


Synthesis of CuO/WO3 and Pt/WO3 Nanocatalysts via Flame-Assisted Spray Pyrolysis and Their Photocatalytic Activity

TOMOYUKI HIRANO, Ogi Takashi, Kikuo Okuyama, Hiroshima University

     Abstract Number: 588
     Working Group: Materials Synthesis

Abstract
Tungsten oxide (WO3) has been regarded as visible-light-driven photocatalyst and many other potential applications. However, pure WO3 shows very low photocatalytic performance under visible light irradiation. One of the promising method to solve this problem, addition of another metal in the WO3 has attracted attention.

In this work, CuO/WO3 and Pt/WO3 nanocatalysts were successfully synthesized using a flame-assisted spray pyrolysis (FASP) method. FASP is an attractive process that enables us to control the particle size, crystal size, and morphology of prepared particles by controlling fuel and carrier gas flow rates, concentrations of precursor, and so on. The flame-made nanocatalysts have strong interconnection between WO3 and co-catalysts, and they were effective for degrading of aqueous organic pollutant under visible light irradiation. The Pt/WO3 nanocatalyst exhibited optimal photocatalytic performance with a low Pt concentration of 0.12 wt.%, which is much lower compared to the reported optimal concentrations using a photodeposition technique (0.5–1 wt.%). It is necessary to reduce the required Pt amount in the Pt/WO3 photocatalysts for large-scale and practical applications.

The addition of CuO enhanced the photocatalytic activity of WO3 for dye photodegradation under visible light irradiation. The morphology of WO3 was changed from nanorods to cubic following the addition of CuO. The CuO/WO3 composite with 0.33 wt.% CuO concentration exhibited the best photocatalytic activity. Furthermore, during a photodegradation test, the as-prepared particles were mechanically stable. Thus, the FASP method is a promising process for the production of a low cost WO3-based photocatalyst.