Issue 11, 2016

Synthesis of magnetic core–shell carbon dot@MFe2O4 (M = Mn, Zn and Cu) hybrid materials and their catalytic properties

Abstract

In this work, magnetic core–shell carbon dot@MFe2O4 (C-dot@MFe2O4) (M = Mn, Zn and Cu) hybrid materials are successfully prepared through a facile ultrasonic method. The resulting nanomaterials are well characterized using various techniques. It is indicated that the MFe2O4 microspheres are homogeneously dispersed and coated with low contrast continuous C-dot layers to form a core–shell structure. In addition, their catalytic activities are evaluated by measuring the reduction of p-nitrophenol (p-NP). The catalytic activity is found to strongly depend on the composition and morphology of the catalyst, and follows an order of C-dot@CuFe2O4 > CuFe2O4 > C-dot@MnFe2O4 > C-dot@ZnFe2O4 > MnFe2O4 > ZnFe2O4 > C-dots. C-dot@CuFe2O4 shows excellent activity with a rate constant of 8.05 × 104 min−1 g−1 which is superior to most reported catalysts. The good catalytic performance of C-dot@CuFe2O4 may be attributed to the specific characteristics of its nanostructure and the synergistic effect between CuFe2O4 and the C-dots. The effects of the substituent and reducing agent are investigated. Furthermore, the catalyst can be easily recovered using a magnetic field and shows good stability; it can be reused for five successive experiments with a conversion efficiency of more than 95%. This novel catalyst also exhibits excellent catalytic performance for the degradation of other organic dyes, such as methylene blue (MB) and rhodamine B (RhB), and can be used for the purification of contaminated water. These results indicate that C-dot@CuFe2O4 is an efficient catalyst for environmental wastewater treatment.

Graphical abstract: Synthesis of magnetic core–shell carbon dot@MFe2O4 (M = Mn, Zn and Cu) hybrid materials and their catalytic properties

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
29 Dec 2015
Accepted
10 Feb 2016
First published
12 Feb 2016

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2016,4, 4044-4055

Synthesis of magnetic core–shell carbon dot@MFe2O4 (M = Mn, Zn and Cu) hybrid materials and their catalytic properties

Y. Guo, L. Zhang, X. Liu, B. Li, D. Tang, W. Liu and W. Qin, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2016, 4, 4044 DOI: 10.1039/C5TA10708C

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