Solvothermal Synthesis, Structural Characterization and Photocatalysis of Fibrous Cobalt(II) Diphenylphosphinate

Abstract The fibrous coordination polymer cobalt(II) diphenylphosphinate was prepared by solvothermal method, and its chemical composition was characterized by XPS, ICP-MS, IC and EA. The surface morphology was analyzed by SEM and TEM. It is found that the diameter of the fiber ranges varies from hundreds of nanometers to several microns and formation of the fiber is due to the twisting of one-dimensional polymeric molecular chains. The crystalline structure of the fibrous polymer was characterized by XRD. The TG curve indicated that the fiber has a higher decomposed temperature. The fibrous compound has lower density compared with the crystalline form of the same composition. The hydrogen production activity of ethanol decomposition photocatalyzed by the cobalt(II) Diphenylphosphinate was explored under UV-visible light irradiation and the quantity of H2 evolution was ca. 165.345 μmol/g for 3h. The catalyst showed good stability and cyclability in the photocatalytic process.