CTAB-assisted synthesis and photocatalytic property of CuO hollow microspheres

CuO hollow microspheres have been fabricated through a simple hydrothermal method in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). The products were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy. The effects of reaction temperature, surfactant, and the molar ratio of Urea/Cu(Π) on the morphologies of the resulting products were investigated. The possible formation mechanism of CuO hollow dandelion-like architectures was proposed. The hierarchical CuO hollow microspheres exhibited a high photocatalytic activity for decolorization of Rhodamine B (RhB) under UV-light illumination. - Graphical abstract: Dandelion-like CuO hollow microspheres were fabricated through a hydrothermal method. The prepared products exhibited a high photocatalytic activity for the photocatalytic decolorization of Rhodamine B aqueous solution under UV-light illumination.