Synthesis of Highly Porous Cu2O Catalysts for Efficient Ozone Decomposition

At present, it is urgent to synthesize highly active ozone decomposition catalysts to cope with the ever-increasing ozone concentration in the atmosphere. In this study, a highly porous Cu2O catalyst was prepared by using combined surfactants of triblock copolymer P123 and n-butanol through a simple solution reduction method by ascorbic acid. Transmittance electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and N-2 adsorption-desorption characterizations verify the highly porous structure with a relatively high surface area of 79.5 m(2)center dot g(-1) and a small crystallite size of 2.7 nm. The highly porous Cu2O shows 90% ozone conversion activity in harsh conditions, such as a high space velocity of 980,000 cm(3)center dot g(-1)center dot h(-1), or a high relative humidity of 90% etc., which is not only attributable to the high surface area but also to the high concentration of surface oxygen vacancy. The results show the promising prospect of the easily synthesized, highly porous Cu2O for effective ozone decomposition applications.

Automated summary

This study successfully synthesized a highly porous Cu2O catalyst that exhibited excellent ozone conversion activity in harsh conditions, providing strong support for ozone decomposition applications.