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Synthesis and visible-light photocatalytic property of spinel CuAl2O4 for vehicle emissions

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Abstract

Photodegradation of vehicle emissions is a promising approach for dealing with atmospheric pollution in road tunnels. In this research, copper aluminate nanoparticles (CuAl2O4) were prepared by the sol–gel method using copper nitrate, aluminum nitrate, and citric acid as precursor materials. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and UV–Vis spectroscopy to validate their structure, surface morphology, and optical properties, respectively. The XRD and SEM results confirm that the CuAl2O4 powder has a particle size of 20–37 nm and exhibits a spinel-type structure. The upper limit of the stimulation wavelength in the UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectrum is located at 725 nm with a band gap (Eg) of about 1.50 eV, which is suitable for effective visible-light degradation. Photocatalytic performance of the CuAl2O4 nanoparticles was analyzed by investigating the effects of light source, calcination temperature, and catalyst loading amount on the degradation of vehicle emissions (CO, HC, and NO). Best results were obtained under fluorescent light irradiation by CuAl2O4 nanoparticles calcined at 700 °C. The optimum catalyst amount for decomposing CO, HC, and NO were determined as 0.5 g, 0.5 g, and 2 g, respectively. Overall, the photocatalytic performance study verifies that spinel CuAl2O4 photocatalyst is a valuable material for next-generation technologies aimed at reducing harmful emissions from vehicles.

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Funding

The work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (Grant No. 51308061). The authors are grateful for their funding.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Road Construction Technology & Equipment, Ministry of Education, Chang’an University, Xi’an, 710064, Shaanxi, China

    Zhuohong Cong

  2. Hunan Academy of Building Research, Changsha, 410000, Hunan, China

    Liang Zhou

  3. Key Laboratory for Special Area Highway Engineering of Ministry of Education, Chang’an University, Xi’an, 710064, Shaanxi, China

    Nanxiang Zheng

  4. School of Highway, Chang’an University, Xi’an, 710064, China

    Taiwo Sesay

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  1. Zhuohong Cong
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  2. Liang Zhou
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Contributions

Zhuohong Cong: conceptualization; methodology; investigation; writing, original draft; writing, review and editing. Liang Zhou: data curation; formal analysis. Nanxiang Zheng: resources, supervision, visualization. Taiwo Sesay: formal analysis, visualization, writing—review and editing. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Cong, Z., Zhou, L., Zheng, N. et al. Synthesis and visible-light photocatalytic property of spinel CuAl2O4 for vehicle emissions. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 64123–64136 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-26814-8

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