Molecular Crystals and Liquid Crystals, Vol.672, No.1, 115-122, 2018
Investigation of properties of the sonomodified ZnO-CeO2 system
The ultrasonic treatment (UST) influence on properties of the ZnO-CeO2 system (atomic ratios Zn/Ce=25:75, 50:50, and 75:25) is studied. A decrease of the size of particles of the oxides, the formation of Zn-Ce-O nanocompositions, and an increase in the specific surface area of the samples are established. It is shown that the sonochemical treatment of oxide zinc-cerium mixtures allows one to increase their photocatalytic activity in the safranin T degradation process. A blue shift of the edge absorption in powder-like samples and an increase in the band gap energy (Eg) are fixed by the UV-vis spectroscopy. The catalytic test of the sonochemically treated ZnO-CeO2=50:50 catalyst in the reaction of ethanol selective oxidation shows a possibility of its use in two processes: i) production of acetaldehyde with high selectivity in a low-temperature reaction (235 degrees C) with the recycle of the raw material, ethanol, and ii) hydrogen production without CO formation at temperatures more than 300 degrees C.