In-situ synthesis of floating ZnIn2S4/cellulose foam for facile photocatalysis

Yichen Zhou; Ying Zhang; Lu Zhang; Jianhao Qiu; Jianfeng Yao

doi:10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.120845

In-situ synthesis of floating ZnIn₂S₄/cellulose foam for facile photocatalysis

Carbohydr Polym. 2023 Jul 15:312:120845. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.120845. Epub 2023 Mar 26.

Authors

Yichen Zhou¹, Ying Zhang¹, Lu Zhang¹, Jianhao Qiu¹, Jianfeng Yao²

Affiliations

¹ College of Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China.
² College of Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China. Electronic address: jfyao@njfu.edu.cn.

PMID: 37059522
DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.120845

Abstract

The delicate design of photocatalyst monoliths is of great significance for the practical applications of artificial photocatalysis. An in-situ synthesis to prepare ZnIn₂S₄/cellulose foam was developed. Cellulose is dispersed in a highly concentrated ZnCl₂ aqueous solution to prepare Zn²⁺/cellulose foam. Zn²⁺ ions are pre-anchored by hydrogen bonds on cellulose and become in-situ sites for synthesizing ultra-thin ZnIn₂S₄ nanosheets. This synthesis method makes ZnIn₂S₄ nanosheets and cellulose tightly bound and prevents ZnIn₂S₄ nanosheets from stacking in multiple layers. As a proof of concept, the prepared ZnIn₂S₄/cellulose foam exhibits a favorable performance for photocatalytic reduction of Cr(VI) under visible light. By adjusting the concentration of zinc ions, the optimal ZnIn₂S₄/cellulose foam is capable to completely reduce Cr(VI) in 2 h and the photocatalytic activities show no decrease after 4 cycles. This work could inspire people to build floating cellulose-based photocatalysts via in-situ synthesis.

Keywords: Cellulose foam; Cr(VI) reduction; Photocatalysis; ZnIn(2)S(4).