Preparation Method of Co 3

Co3O4 nanoparticles were fabricated by a novel, facile, and environment-friendly carbon-assisted method using degreasing cotton. Structural and morphological characterizations were performed using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The component of the sample obtained at different temperatures was measured by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Nitrogen adsorption and desorption isotherms were utilized to reveal the specific surface areas. The formation mechanism of Co3O4 nanoparticles was also proposed, demonstrating that the additive degreasing cotton played an indispensable role in the process of synthesizing the sample. The resultant Co3O4 sample calcined at 600°C exhibited superior electrochemical performance with better specific capacitance and long-term cycling life, due to its high specific surface areas and pores structures. Additionally, it has been proved that this facile synthetic strategy can be extended to produce other metal oxide materials (e.g., Fe3O4). As a consequence, the carbon-assisted method using degreasing cotton accompanied a promising prospect for practical application

A Green and Facile Synthesis of Carbon-Incorporated Co3O4 Nanoparticles and Their Photocatalytic Activity for Hydrogen Evolution

Carbon-incorporated Co3O4 nanoparticles with an average diameter of 50 nm were prepared via a facile and environmentally friendly one-pot carbon-assisted method using degreasing cotton as a template as well as a reactant. The elemental analysis indicates the incorporation of carbon species into the Co3O4 nanoparticles and the XPS measurements demonstrate the presence of carbon species which comes from the incomplete combustion of the degreasing cotton. Interestingly, the resultant sample was able to split pure water into hydrogen under visible light irradiation without any cocatalyst, which is mainly due to the enhanced light absorption behavior confirmed by the UV-Vis absorption spectra. This facile method provided a potential strategy for applying narrow bandgap semiconductors in pure water splitting