Facile synthesis and versatile applications of Co3O4 nanocubes constructed by nanoparticles

Versatile Co3O4 nanocubes made up of abundant nanoparticles with a mean size of ∼25 nm were reported here. A precursor with a cubic shape was firstly prepared by a simple solvothermal process; and then porous Co3O4 nanocubes were obtained through calcining the cubic precursor. The as-obtained products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and (high resolution) transmission electron microscopy. Experiments showed that the as-obtained porous Co3O4 nanocubes presented good electrochemical property in 0.1 mol L−1 KOH solution and could be used as an electrochemical sensor for the detection of glucose. The corresponding detection limit was calculated to be 0.77 μM. Also, the as-obtained Co3O4 nanocubes owned excellent photocatalytic activity. Under the irradiation of 365 nm UV light, 97.8% Pyronine B and 98.2% Safranine T were degraded within 3 h. Moreover, the as-obtained product still exhibited an outstanding catalytic ability for the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate (AP). Before and after the addition of 2 wt% Co3O4, the decomposition temperature of AP decreased from 478 °C to 275 °C. The above facts indicated that the as-prepared porous Co3O4 nanocubes had extensive applications as potential multifunctional catalysts in many fields.