Synthesis of CuO-ZnO and its application in photocatalytic degradation of nonylphenol polyethoxylate

CuO doped zinc oxide particles were successfully prepared by sol-gel Pechini method at 500 degrees C. XRD and SEM techniques were used to characterize the CuO-doped ZnO samples. The photocatalytic degradation of nonylphenol polyethoxylate a nonionic surfactant was investigated in aqueous solution using CuO-ZnO nanoparticles. The degradation was studied under different conditions such as the Cu2+ concentration, amount of photocatalyst, irradiation time, pH, initial concentration and presence of electron acceptor. Under optimal degradation conditions of surfactant, the photodegradation percent of nonylphenol polyethoxylate was 91% when the solution was irradiated by the 400W high pressure mercury vapor lamp for five hour.