Photoinduced superhydrophilicity and photocatalytic properties of ZnO nanoplatelets

The present work is devoted to the investigation of photoinduced superhydrophilicity (PSH) and photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) activity of quasi-2D zinc oxide nanoplatelets obtained by Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD). In the case of PCO, the degradation of a fatty compound layer (methyl stearate) was chosen as a test reaction. The peculiar textural and morphological features of such systems resulted in a PSH behavior and in a PCO activity appreciably higher than those of a reference commercial Pilkington ® Activ TM Glass. Relevant results are presented and discussed as a function of the structure and morphology of these systems, whose control enables a direct tailoring of the functional response.