Cellulose controlled zinc oxide nanoparticles with adjustable morphology and their photocatalytic performances

The cellulose fibers with different size and aspect ratio was used as the matrix for the controllable preparation of zinc oxide (ZnO) to synthesize ZnO/cellulose composite catalyst with adjustable photocatalytic properties. The ZnO with different morphology of sphere, sheet, and flower, was in-situ synthesized on cellulose fibers by chemical deposition method, the flower-like ZnO supported on cellulose fiber exhibited the best photocatalytic activity. Furthermore, with the decrease of fiber size, the morphology of ZnO changed from most sheet to fully self-assembled flower shape, and the average thickness of nanosheets was increased. Cellulose fibers with smaller size and higher aspect ratio were more likely to form a 3D network structure with rich pores and stable mechanical properties. Significantly, with the decreasing of fiber size, ZnO/NFC has excellent photocatalytic efficiency (100 %). All ZnO/cellulose composites can be recycled more than five times.

Automated summary

By controlling the size and aspect ratio of cellulose fibers, the photocatalytic properties of synthesized zinc oxide/cellulose composite catalyst were adjusted, with flower-like ZnO supported on cellulose fibers showing the best photocatalytic activity. Cellulose fibers with smaller size and higher aspect ratio were found to be more likely to form a 3D network structure, leading to improved stability and photocatalytic efficiency of the composite materials.