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Applied Sciences
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Cu and Cu-Based Nanoparticles: Applications in Catalysis
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Cu and Cu-Based Nanoparticles: Applications in Catalysis

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Nanotechnology and Applied Nanosciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2019) | Viewed by 24796

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Laura Clarizia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemical, Materials and Production Engineering (DICMaPI), Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Piazzale V. Tecchio, 80125 Napoli, Italy
Interests: environmental protection and pollution mitigation; photocatalysis; advanced oxidation processes; solar chemical processes; hydrogen production
Prof. Dr. Raffaele Marotta

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemical Engineering, Materials and Industrial Production, University of Naples Federico II, Corso Umberto I, 40, 80138 Napoli, NA, Italy
Interests: solar photocatalysis; green chemistry; hydrogen solar production; advanced oxidation processes; kinetic modelling
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nanoscience has recently attracted increased attention due to its potential to provide sound solutions to a number of technological and environmental issues in the areas of chemical manufacturing, biological applications, energy conversion and storage, and water treatment.

Metal nanoparticles exhibit improved optical, electronic, magnetic, chemical, and biological properties when compared to their bulk correspondents. Due to their high specific surface areas, such particles are of particular interest for research in catalysts with enhanced activity and selectivity. The design and the development of techniques to synthesize metal nanoparticles with tunable size, shape, composition, crystallinity, and structure are, therefore, gaining growing attention.

Copper is an earth-abundant and inexpensive metal with high electrical and thermal conductivity, high corrosion resistance, good ductility, malleability, and tensile strength. Due to such properties, copper based nanomaterials can effectively replace rare and expensive noble-metal catalysts commonly employed in commercial chemical processes. Copper-based nanocatalysts have a number of applications, including gas-phase reactions, Ulmann reactions, cross-coupling reactions, A3-coupling reactions, azide-alkyne cycloaddition, photocatalysis, and electrocatalysis.

However, synthesis and use of nanosized copper particles are still challenging due to the high tendency for oxidation of copper under atmospheric conditions. As oxides are thermodynamically more stable, surface oxide layers inevitably form on copper nanoparticles and limit their use.

Copper-based nanoparticles with complex structures (i.e., core/shell) and catalysts based on copper oxides have been recently adopted in order to overcome the instability of copper nanoparticles in the presence of oxygen, water, and several chemical species. Alternatively, copper nanoparticles have been fixed on selected supports, such as metal oxides, SiO2, carbon-based materials, or polymers. At present, the main challenge in the design and synthesis of copper-based nanocatalysts is to develop highly stable, active, selective, and low cost materials.

This Special Issue of the journal Applied Sciences “Cu and Cu-Based Nanoparticles: Applications in Catalysis” aims to cover recent advances in the development of copper-based nanosized particles for different catalytic applications.

Dr. Laura Clarizia
Prof. Dr. Raffaele Marotta
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Copper nanosized catalyst
  • Copper-based nanophotocatalysts
  • Copper oxides
  • Metallic copper
  • Hybrid copper nanostructures
  • Carbon-supported copper nanoparticles
  • Metal-supported copper nanoparticles
  • Polymer-supported copper nanoparticles
  • Silica-supported copper nanoparticles

Published Papers (4 papers)

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13 pages, 1121 KiB  
Article
Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production from Glycerol Aqueous Solution Using Cu-Doped ZnO under Visible Light Irradiation
by Vincenzo Vaiano and Giuseppina Iervolino
Appl. Sci. 2019, 9(13), 2741; https://doi.org/10.3390/app9132741 - 06 Jul 2019
Cited by 39 | Viewed by 3628
Abstract
Cu-doped ZnO photocatalysts at different Cu loadings were prepared by a precipitation method. The presence of Cu in the ZnO crystal lattice led to significant enhancement in photocatalytic activity for H2 production from an aqueous glycerol solution under visible light irradiation. The [...] Read more.
Cu-doped ZnO photocatalysts at different Cu loadings were prepared by a precipitation method. The presence of Cu in the ZnO crystal lattice led to significant enhancement in photocatalytic activity for H2 production from an aqueous glycerol solution under visible light irradiation. The best Cu loading was found to be 1.08 mol %, which allowed achieving hydrogen production equal to 2600 μmol/L with an aqueous glycerol solution at 5 wt % initial concentration, the photocatalyst dosage equal to 1.5 g/L, and at the spontaneous pH of the solution (pH = 6). The hydrogen production rate was increased to about 4770 μmol/L by increasing the initial glycerol concentration up to 10 wt %. The obtained results evidenced that the optimized Cu-doped ZnO could be considered a suitable visible-light-active photocatalyst to be used in photocatalytic hydrogen production without the presence of noble metals in sample formulation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cu and Cu-Based Nanoparticles: Applications in Catalysis)
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20 pages, 5345 KiB  
Article
Cu-Doped TiO2: Visible Light Assisted Photocatalytic Antimicrobial Activity
by Snehamol Mathew, Priyanka Ganguly, Stephen Rhatigan, Vignesh Kumaravel, Ciara Byrne, Steven J. Hinder, John Bartlett, Michael Nolan and Suresh C. Pillai
Appl. Sci. 2018, 8(11), 2067; https://doi.org/10.3390/app8112067 - 26 Oct 2018
Cited by 176 | Viewed by 13825
Abstract
Surface contamination by microbes is a major public health concern. A damp environment is one of potential sources for microbe proliferation. Smart photocatalytic coatings on building surfaces using semiconductors like titania (TiO2) can effectively curb this growing threat. Metal-doped titania in [...] Read more.
Surface contamination by microbes is a major public health concern. A damp environment is one of potential sources for microbe proliferation. Smart photocatalytic coatings on building surfaces using semiconductors like titania (TiO2) can effectively curb this growing threat. Metal-doped titania in anatase phase has been proven as a promising candidate for energy and environmental applications. In this present work, the antimicrobial efficacy of copper (Cu)-doped TiO2 (Cu-TiO2) was evaluated against Escherichia coli (Gram-negative) and Staphylococcus aureus (Gram-positive) under visible light irradiation. Doping of a minute fraction of Cu (0.5 mol %) in TiO2 was carried out via sol-gel technique. Cu-TiO2 further calcined at various temperatures (in the range of 500–700 °C) to evaluate the thermal stability of TiO2 anatase phase. The physico-chemical properties of the samples were characterized through X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photo-electron spectroscopy (XPS) and UV–visible spectroscopy techniques. XRD results revealed that the anatase phase of TiO2 was maintained well, up to 650 °C, by the Cu dopant. UV–vis results suggested that the visible light absorption property of Cu-TiO2 was enhanced and the band gap is reduced to 2.8 eV. Density functional theory (DFT) studies emphasize the introduction of Cu+ and Cu2+ ions by replacing Ti4+ ions in the TiO2 lattice, creating oxygen vacancies. These further promoted the photocatalytic efficiency. A significantly high bacterial inactivation (99.9999%) was attained in 30 min of visible light irradiation by Cu-TiO2. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cu and Cu-Based Nanoparticles: Applications in Catalysis)
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23 pages, 7283 KiB  
Article
Two-Stage Strategy for CO Removal from H2-Rich Streams over (Nano-) CuO/CeO2 Structured Catalyst at Low Temperature
by Gianluca Landi, Almerinda Di Benedetto and Luciana Lisi
Appl. Sci. 2018, 8(5), 789; https://doi.org/10.3390/app8050789 - 15 May 2018
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3179
Abstract
Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells represent one of the most interesting systems for converting hydrogen from fossil or renewable fuels into electric power at low temperature. To prevent poisoning of fuel cell anodes, CO concentration has to be reduced to 10–100 ppm. [...] Read more.
Proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells represent one of the most interesting systems for converting hydrogen from fossil or renewable fuels into electric power at low temperature. To prevent poisoning of fuel cell anodes, CO concentration has to be reduced to 10–100 ppm. To this aim, the preliminary catalytic preferential oxidation of CO may be used, provided that the catalyst effectively oxidizes CO, limiting as much as possible the oxidation of H2. Presently, both high selectivity and CO conversion cannot be simultaneously achieved. In this work, a novel strategy for CO removal from H2-rich streams based on a CuO/CeO2 reactive trap is proposed, exploiting both catalytic and adsorption properties of this material. The process occurs in two stages. In the first stage, one reactor, fed with a CO-containing stream, works as a CO-reactive adsorber, providing a CO-free mixture. In the second stage, the adsorbed CO is converted to CO2 by O2. By this approach it is possible to simultaneously get CO lower than the limiting value and avoid any H2 oxidation with no O2 in the feed stream to PEM. Experimental tests allowed the evaluation of the kinetic parameters of all the reaction mechanism steps. Model simulations were performed at varying operating parameters, showing that the positive effect of high contact times and low CO inlet concentration is significantly affected by the non-linear behavior of the CO reactive adsorption. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cu and Cu-Based Nanoparticles: Applications in Catalysis)
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14 pages, 6409 KiB  
Article
Study of the Electromagnetic Properties of Nano (MxZn1−x)Fe2O4 (M=Cu, Ni) as a Function of the Sintering Temperature
by Yenchun Liu and Jarnchih Hsu
Appl. Sci. 2018, 8(4), 605; https://doi.org/10.3390/app8040605 - 11 Apr 2018
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3160
Abstract
In this study, the chemical co-precipitation method was used to prepare a nanoscale ferrite powder with Cu-Zn and Ni-Zn compositions. Ferrite, in different Cu-Zn stoichiometric ratios, showed optimal composition of saturated magnetization for Cu0.7Zn0.3Fe2O4; under [...] Read more.
In this study, the chemical co-precipitation method was used to prepare a nanoscale ferrite powder with Cu-Zn and Ni-Zn compositions. Ferrite, in different Cu-Zn stoichiometric ratios, showed optimal composition of saturated magnetization for Cu0.7Zn0.3Fe2O4; under an air environment and calcined at 900 °C, the saturated magnetization was 60.19 M(emu/g). The average particle diameter was 10 nm for the non-calcined sample, while when the sintering temperature was 900 °C, the particle diameter was about 150 nm. In addition, in different Ni-Zn stoichiometric ratios, the optimal composition of the saturated magnetization was Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4; under an air environment and calcination at 900 °C, the saturated magnetization was 91.40 M(emu/g). The average particle diameter for the non-calcined sample was about 10 nm, but when the sintering temperature was 1200 °C, the particle diameter was 201.06 nm. The prepared ferrite nano-powder was characterized by scanning electron microscopy(SEM), X-ray diffraction(XRD), and vibrating sample magnetometer(VSM) to reveal its microscopic structure and related electromagnetic properties. Ferrite powders of either Cu-Zn or Ni-Zn composition can be used as catalysts for chemical reactions or iron core materials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cu and Cu-Based Nanoparticles: Applications in Catalysis)
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