Synthesis and Characterization of Modified Diatomite-Leaf-Like CuO Nanosheet Composites

In this work, firstly we described the effect of freeze drying on modification of raw diatomite. And then, modified diatomite-leaf-like copper oxide (CuO) nanosheet composite was successfully prepared by surfactant-free in-situ chemical precipitation method. The structure, morphology and elemental analysis of CuO nanosheets and its composite were analyzed by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX). Dimensions of leaf-like CuO nanosheets were approximately determined as 160 nm in width, 320 nm in length and 20 nm in thickness. According to the EDAX spectrum, leaf-like CuO nanosheets composed of Cu and O atoms without any impurity and also uniformly covered the entire surface of modified diatomite.