Synthesis of nanocrystalline copper oxide with dandelion-like morphology by homogeneous precipitation method

•Nanocrystalline CuO with dandelion-like morphology has been prepared by a simple homogeneous precipitation method.•Easy way to prepare nanocrystalline CuO in short time without using any surfactant or microwave irradiation.•Nanocrystalline CuO with dandelion-like morphology has high specific surface area.•Nanocrystalline copper oxide serves as an excellent catalyst for the reduction of aromatic nitro compounds.

Nanocrystalline copper oxide with dandelion-like morphology has been successfully synthesized by a simple homogeneous precipitation method using copper acetate and ammonia solution. It was obtained at low temperature (∼80 °C) in short precipitation time. The formation of dandelion-like microspheres and their size depend on calcination temperature. The synthesized samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), UV–Visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV–Vis DRS), surface area measurements, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) coupled with energy dispersive X-ray analysis. The nanocrystalline copper oxide has been explored as a good catalyst for reduction of 4-nitrophenol with sodium borohydride.

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