Preparation of cubic Cu₂O nanoparticles wrapped by reduced graphene oxide for the efficient removal of rhodamine B

Cu₂O nanoparticles evenly distributed on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) to form Cu₂O/rGO nanocomposites were fabricated by a facile in-situ wet-reduced method. The crystalline structure, morphologies and photoluminescence of the Cu₂O/rGO nanocomposites were characterized and analyzed. The photocatalytic activity of Cu₂O/rGO nanocomposites was evaluated by the removal of rhodamine B (RhB) aqueous solution under visible light irradiation. In comparison with the pure Cu₂O nanoparticles, the as-synthesized Cu₂O/rGO nanocomposites show the wonderful photocatalytic activity and the corresponding removal rate of RhB achieved more than 95%. A possible photocatalytic mechanism for the Cu₂O/GO nanocomposites with enhanced photocatalytic activity could be ascribed to the enhanced adsorption intensity and effective charge carriers separation by RGO. - Highlights: • Low cost synthesis of Cu₂O/rGO nanocomposites by a facile in-situ wet-reduced method was demonstrated. • Cubic Cu₂O nanoparticles were well dispersed on the rGO nanosheets. • Cu₂O/rGO nanocomposites exhibited an excellent photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation. • The mechanism for the excellent photocatalytic activity of Cu₂O/rGO nanocomposites was proposed.