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Convenient synthesis of twin-Christmas tree-like PbWO4 microcrystals and their photocatalytic properties

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Abstract

Novel twin-Christmas tree-like PbWO4 microcrystals have been prepared via a convenient aqueous solution route at room temperature under the assistance of β-cyclodextrin (β-CD). The product was characterized by XRD, EDX, SEM, TEM, UV-vis and PL and BET techniques. It was found that β-CD plays an important role in the forming of twin-Christmas tree-like PbWO4 microcrystals. A five-step growth mechanism was proposed to explain the formation of such twin-Christmas tree-like structures. The photocatalytic performance of PbWO4 microcrystals was evaluated by measuring the decomposition rate of methylene blue (MB) and malachite green (MG) solution under the UV irradiation, and the photocatalytic results indicated that as-prepared PbWO4 microcrystals exhibit good and versatile photocatalytic activity as well as excellent recyclability.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Chongqing Science & Technology Commission, China (Grant Nos. CSTC2015JCYJBX0126 and CSTC2016SHMSZX20001), the Key Laboratory of Analysis & Detection for Food Safety (Fuzhou University), Ministry of Education (Project No. FS-1402), the Foundation of Chongqing Municipal Education Commission (KJ1711292), and the Scientific Research Project of Chongqing University of Arts and Sciences (Project No. Y2015XC28).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Materials and Chemical Engineering, Chongqing University of Arts and Sciences, Chongqing, 402160, China

    Jin Zhang, Li-Li Peng & Ying Tang

  2. Chongqing Key Laboratory of Environmental Materials & Remediation, Chongqing, 402160, China

    Jin Zhang, Li-Li Peng & Ying Tang

  3. Research Institute for New Materials Technology, Chongqing University of Arts and Sciences, Chongqing, 400715, China

    Huijie Wu

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  1. Jin Zhang
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Correspondence to Jin Zhang.

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Zhang, J., Peng, LL., Tang, Y. et al. Convenient synthesis of twin-Christmas tree-like PbWO4 microcrystals and their photocatalytic properties. Front. Mater. Sci. 11, 139–146 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11706-017-0381-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11706-017-0381-0

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