Graphene-wrapped ZnO nanospheres as a photocatalyst for high performance photocatalysis

Abstract In this work, graphene-wrapped ZnO nanospheres (ZnO–graphene nanocomposites) were prepared by a simple facile lyophilization method, followed by thermal treatment process. ZnO nanospheres with the size of about 100–400 nm, composed of numerous nanocrystals with hexagonal wurtzite structure, were well separated from each other and wrapped with transparent graphene sheets. Compared to ZnO nanospheres, the ZnO–graphene nanocomposites showed a significant enhancement in the photodegradation of methylene blue. This enhanced photocatalytic activity could be attributed to their favorable dye-adsorption affinity and increased optical absorption as well as the efficient charge transfer of the photogenerated electrons in the conduction band of ZnO to graphene. Thus, this work could provide a facile and low-cost method for the development of graphene-based nanocomposites with promising applications in photocatalysis, solar energy conversion, sensing, and so on.