Synthesis of Cu2O Nanotubes with Efficient Photocatalytic Activity by Electrochemical Corrosion Method

Metal oxide nanotubes have been synthesized with varied methods based on mechanisms such as the Kirkendall effect, dislocation-driven growth, and so on. However, most of these methods pose a challenge to these thermally unstable metal oxides. Herein, we first adopted the concept of electrochemical corrosion in the successful synthesis of scalable tubular Cu2O nanopartide (>10 mu m in length, 20-500 nm in diameter) in aqueous solution at room temperature. By investigating different growth stages of the reaction process, a CuBr2- ion diffusion mechanism was rationally put forward associating with the literature, instead of the atom diffusion mechanism in the Kirkendall effect. The products exhibit outstanding specific surface area and photocatalytical activity. The present method provides a new route for synthesizing metal oxides with hollow structures.