Cooperative Photocatalytic Degradation of Methyl Orange by H_2O_2 and CuO Thin Film

In this study,we prepared CuO thin film from Cu(NO3)2·3H2O,ammonium hydroxide and NaOH by using chemical bath deposition(CBD) method.Structural characterization of the film has been made before and after photocatalytic reaction using XRD and SEM.CuO thin film was then applied to Methyl Orange solution containing H2O2.The reaction solution was collected for visible spectrophotometry after certain periods of radiation under different light sources.Our experiments demonstrate that,optimal Methyl Orange degradation rate can be achieved with CuO film at surface area of 12.50cm2,40.0mL 3.0% H2O2 and pH=7 for the reaction system,under UV light.Under optimal conditions,100.0% degradation rate can be obtained in 10 min,whereas in 40 min in the absence of H2O2,indicating a cooperative effect on photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange by H2O2 and CuO thin film.