An illustration of photocatalytic properties of ZnO nanorods array films

ZnO nanorods array films were coated on a glass template through a two-step chemical process. First, a sol-gel spin coating method was used to produce a ZnO seed layer and after that, the ZnO nanorods arrays were grown on it through a low temperature aqueous method. Synthesized films were studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffractometer (XRD). X-ray diffraction results showed single crystalline wurtzite with a c-axis preferential (۰۰۲) orientation. The deposited ZnO layers had c-axis orientation, and showed a sharp X-ray diffraction peak at ۲θ=۳۴.۴۰ degrees, corresponding to the (۰۰۲) of hexagonal ZnO crystal. The SEM images showed vertical orientation of rods, and the diameters of rods were under ۱۰۰ nm. The photocatalytic degradation of XG۶ azo dye in aqueous solutions was examined with a combination of ZnO nanorods array film as a photocatalyst and UV light. Results showed that the films are effective in decolorization of dye.

Keywords:

Photocatalytic degradation , Zinc oxide , Nanorods , UV light