Low-temperature synthesis of copper oxide (CuO) nanostructures with temperature-controlled morphological variations

We demonstrate low-temperature formation of copper oxide (CuO) nanostructures as well as temperature-controlled variation of morphology by applying hydrothermal methods with copper(II) acetate Cu(CH3COO)2·H2O and 2-piperidinemethanol (2PPM) as starting materials. Monoclinic CuO nanostructures produced at 25 °C were of dendritic morphology with short nanorod-like substructures and exhibited a consequently large surface area (179 m2 g−1). Cyclic voltammetry measurements confirmed pseudocapacitive behavior of these dendritic CuO nanostructures giving specific capacitance ca. 28.2 F g−1 at a scan rate of 5 mV s−1. Oxide nanomaterials prepared in this investigation were characterized using powder X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopies, and nitrogen adsorption/desorption techniques. It is expected that these materials exhibit improved sensing and catalytic properties due to the increased availability of surface adsorption sites.