In this work, localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) mediated by aluminum nanoparticles (Al NPs) was investigated to enhance the ultraviolet (UV) response of the zinc oxide nanorods (ZnO NRs) grown by the hydrothermal method. The ZnO NRs were characterized by scanning electron microscope, energy dispersive spectroscopy, X-ray diffractometer, Raman spectrometer, ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometer and fluorescence spectrometer. The results show that the morphology and crystalline structure of the ZnO NRs could not be changed before and after decoration with Al NPs, but the absorption rates in the UV range and the photoluminescence (PL) properties were improved. The photo-to-dark current ratio of ZnO NRs with Al NPs was about 447 for 325 nm UV light (5 mW/cm²) at 3.0 V bias, with the sensitivity increasing from 9.5 to 47.8, and the responsivity increasing from 53 to 267 mA/W.

Supported nanostructured photocatalysis is considered to be a sustainable and promising method for water pollution photodegradation applications due to its fascinating features, including a high surface area, stability against aggregation, and easy handling and recovery. However, the preparation and morphological control of the supported nanostructured photocatalyst remains a challenge. Herein, a one-step hydrothermal method is proposed to fabricate the supported vertically aligned ZnO nanosheet arrays based on aluminum foil. The morphologically controlled growth of the supported ZnO nanosheet arrays on a large scale was achieved, and the effects of hydrothermal temperature on morphologic, structural, optical, and photocatalytic properties were observed. The results reveal that the surface area and thickness of the nanosheet increase simultaneously with the increase in the hydrothermal temperature. The increase in the surface area enhances the photocatalytic activity by providing more active sites, while the increase in the thickness reduces the charge transfer and thus decreases the photocatalytic activity. The influence competition between the area increasing and thickness increasing of the ZnO nanosheet results in the nonlinear dependence between photocatalytic activity and hydrothermal temperature. By optimizing the hydrothermal growth temperature, as fabricated and supported ZnO nanosheet arrays grown at 110 °C have struck a balance between the increase in surface area and thickness, it exhibits efficient photodegradation, facile fabrication, high recyclability, and improved durability. The RhB photodegradation efficiency of optimized and grown ZnO nanosheet arrays increased by more than four times that of the unoptimized structure. With 10 cm² of as-fabricated ZnO nanosheet arrays, the degradation ratio of 10 mg/L MO, MB, OFL, and NOR was 85%, 51%, 58%, and 71% under UV irradiation (365 nm, 20 mW/cm²) for 60 min. All the target pollutant solutions were almost completely degraded under UV irradiation for 180 min. This work offers a facile way for the fabrication and morphological control of the supported nanostructured photocatalyst with excellent photodegradation properties and has significant implications in the practical application of the supported nanostructured photocatalyst for water pollution photodegradation.

To enhance the conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), a novel photoactive electrode based on the bilayer composite films consisting of titanium dioxide/carbon nanotubes (TiO₂/CNTs) mixed film and pure TiO₂ film are fabricated on ITO coated glass. The TiO₂/CNTs mixed underlayer was used to reduce the internal resistance of charge transport within photoactive layer, which would enhance short circuit photocurrent density, and the pure TiO₂ overlayer was employed to prevent indirect charge recombination between ITO electrode and redox electrolyte. Scanning electron micrographs show that the spherical TiO₂ nanoparticles were homogenously distributed, and the CNTs geometrically matched with the TiO₂ nanoparticles by filling into the interspaces within mesoporous bilayer composite films. Electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) reveal that the bilayer composite films could decrease the internal resistance of charge transport within photoactive layer. Incident photon to current conversion efficiency (IPCE) measurement results reveal that the bilayer composite films could improve the photocurrent for the DSSC in near-infrared region from 600 nm to 800 nm.The photocurrent voltage measure shows that the composite bilayer film could enhance the short circuit photocurrent density of the DSSC from 9.11 mA·cm⁻² to 12.67 mA·cm⁻², and the overall conversion efficiency from 2.94% to 5.08%.

The tungsten trioxide (WO₃) precursor was prepared by sol-gel method with tungsten powder as the raw material, and the WO₃ gas sensing films were obtained by a dip coating method and annealing precursor in air. X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra indicate that with increasing annealing temperature the triclinic structure of as-prepared sample was transformed into monoclinic or orthorhombic phase. The images of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) exhibit that the WO₃ grain sizes increase from less than 100 nm to several micrometers with increasing annealing temperature. The influences of applied frequency, annealing and operating temperature on NH₃ gas sensing properties of the nanostructured WO₃ porous films were investigated. The results indicate that the gas sensing film annealed at 500°C express high sensitivity, fast response and recovery speed to NH₃ at operating temperature 250°C.