Nanodiamond-decorated ZnO catalysts with enhanced photocorrosion-resistance for photocatalytic degradation of gaseous toluene

[Display omitted] •Nanodiamond decoration alleviated the photocorrosion problem of ZnO.•Photocatalytic activity and photocorrosion resistance of nanodiamond-decorated ZnO was greatly enhanced.•Nanodiamonds decoration improved the light adsorption and promoted the charge transfer.•The active species among nanodiamond-decorated ZnO were superoxide radicals and photo-generated holes.•The reaction mechanism for photocatalytic degradation of toluene was proposed. Photocatalytic degradation of indoor volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is considered as one of a promising strategy for resolving indoor pollution problems. Zinc oxide has been widely used in photocatalysis. However, the photocorrosion of ZnO restrains its further application. Herein, we decorated ZnO with nanodiamonds to solve the photocorrosion problem of ZnO for photocatalytic degradation of gaseous toluene. The photocorrosion-resistance of nanodiamond-decorated ZnO catalysts was enhanced. It was demonstrated that after the decoration of nanodiamonds, the optical absorption and transient photocurrent were effectively increased, while the photoluminescence intensity and electrochemical impedance were greatly reduced, indicating that nanodiamonds decoration not only improved the light adsorption for ZnO, but also promoted the charge transfer and eventually enhanced the photocatalytic oxidation efficiency of toluene. We hope that this work could propose possible ways to relieve the photocorrosion of ZnO semiconductor in the photocatalytic application and provide new insights into the degradation of gaseous pollutants.