Preparation of ZnO Photocatalyst by Plasma-Enhanced Vapor Deposition and Their Photocatalytic Activity

This study aims to fabricate ZnO photocatalyst on anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes using radio frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (RF-PECVD), and to investigate the influence of catalyst morphology on its photocatalytic performance. ZnO particles were found to be evenly deposited at the edges around pores and formed rod-like or ring-like shaped catalyst arrays under specific conditions. Isopropyl alcohol was used as a target pollutant for evaluation of photocatalytic performance of ZnO catalyst under UV light of 365 nm. Substantial degradation of IPA (approximately 90 to 95%) was achieved in a batch system, and the rate of degradation followed zero order reaction kinetics. It was also evident that the degradation efficiency was positively correlated to the catalyst morphology, as nanorod shaped catalysts tended to have relatively higher activate surface area than ring-like or thin film shaped catalysts.