title: Interaction between copper and carbon nanotubes triggers their mutual role in the enhanced photodegradation of p-chloroaniline.
abstract: Copper (Cu, 1-5 wt%) was loaded onto carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by a simple electrochemical method. The physicochemical properties of catalysts (Cu/CNTs) were characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nitrogen (N2) adsorption-desorption, Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and electron spinning resonance (ESR). The results showed that the Cu was distributed well on the CNT surface by the interaction of Cu(2+) ions with -OH and -COOH groups on the CNT surface, which preferentially occurred at the defect sites along the CNT backbone. The Cu-O-C bonds formed were found to play an important role in enhancing the photoactivity of the catalysts. The highest number of Cu-O-C bonds possessed by 3 wt% Cu/CNTs demonstrated the best performance in the degradation of p-chloroaniline (96%) under UV light irradiation within 5 h of reaction at 27 °C and under neutral pH conditions. Kinetic studies showed that the degradation followed the pseudo-first order model and the surface reaction was the controlling step. It is believed that these results could contribute to the synthesis of various supported catalysts for various applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia. aishahaj@utm.my.
authors.forename: N F
authors.initials: NF
authors.lastname: Khusnun
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia. aishahaj@utm.my and Centre of Hydrogen Energy, Institute of Future Energy, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Jalil
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Triwahyono
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Engineering & Green Technology, Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Kuala Lumpur, 54100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: N W C
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Jusoh
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia. aishahaj@utm.my and Centre of Hydrogen Energy, Institute of Future Energy, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Johari
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia. aishahaj@utm.my and Centre of Hydrogen Energy, Institute of Future Energy, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 UTM Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kidam