Copper(I) sulfide (Cu 2 S) nanoparticles from Cu(II) diethyldithiocarbamate: Synthesis, characterization and its application in ultrasound-assisted catalytic degradation of organic dye pollutants

Abstract In this study, copper(I) sulfide (Cu 2 S) nanoparticles were easily synthesized via thermal decomposition of Cu(II) diethyldithiocarbamate complex at 220 °C. Characterization by a variety of spectroscopic and physical techniques confirmed that the obtained product was pure Cu 2 S composed of about 50 nm nanoparticles. An ultrasound-assisted advanced oxidation process (AOP) was developed for the degradation of methylene blue (MB) over the Cu 2 S nanoparticles. The ultrasound-assisted H 2 O 2 /Cu 2 S catalysis removed 100% MB (25 mg L ⿿1 ) in 12 min with an apparent rate constant of 0.268 min ⿿1 , which is 193 and 27.5 folds of that in the simple catalytic H 2 O 2 /Cu 2 S and US/H 2 O 2 systems, respectively. The synergistic behavior between Cu 2 S catalysis and ultrasound waves was demonstrated to be dependent on Cu 2 S dosage and H 2 O 2 concentration. Trapping experiments indicated that OH radicals were the main reactive species for MB degradation in the present sonocatalytic system. Furthermore, the cycling experiments revealed the good stability of Cu 2 S nanoparticles.