Influence of pH on the synthesis ZnO nanorods and photocatalytic hydrogen production from glycerol solution

Abstract

Photocatalytic oxidation of glycerol at ambient conditions has been investigated with the use of Zinc oxide photocatalysts. Zinc oxide nanorods were prepared via a simple hydrothermal method using zinc nitrate and sodium hydroxide in the solution pH of 7, 8 and 9. The samples prepared in this way were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) and ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV–vis). The pH of the solution is 7, the sample contains zinc hydroxide nitrate hydrated. When the pH of solution was adjusted to 8 and 9, the samples consisted of pure hexagonal wurtzite ZnO without impurity detection. The influence of solution pH on hydrogen formation was investigated. The wurtzite ZnO nanorods synthesized in a solution with pH 9 are considered promising photocatalysts for hydrogen production under xenon radiation.