Wide band gap p-type nanocrystalline CuBO2 as a novel UV photocatalyst

• CuBO2 nanocrystals were synthesized by sol–gel route.
• The products have been characterized to confirm the formation of CuBO2.
• Photocatalytic activity of this material is reported for the first time.

Wide band gap copper based delafossite CuBO2 nanocrystalline powders of different particle sizes were synthesized via sol–gel route. Structural characterization was performed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) which confirmed good crystallinity and proper phase formation of the samples. Compositional analysis was carried out by energy dispersive X-ray studies (EDX), whereas field emission scanning electron microscopy revealed morphological information of the samples. The photocatalytic performance of this delafossite material was studied for the first time with a standard photocatalytic set-up and the photocatalytic efficiency was found to increase with decreasing particle size. The Langmuir–Hinshelwood photocatalytic rate constants increased considerably for the samples synthesized at different pH from 2.75 to 0.5; which eventually varied particle size. The efficient photocatalytic performance, found for the first time here, will make this novel p-type wide band gap semiconductor a truly multifunctional material.

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