Electrolysis of Cu2S into copper nanosheets and sulfur particles in ChCl-thiourea deep eutectic solvent
(1. School of Metallurgical Engineering, Anhui University of Technology, Ma’anshan 243002, China;
2. Wuhu Technology and Innovation Research Institute, Anhui University of Technology, Wuhu 241000, China;
3. Anhui International Joint Research Center for Metallurgical Process and System Science, Ma’anshan 243002, China)
2. Wuhu Technology and Innovation Research Institute, Anhui University of Technology, Wuhu 241000, China;
3. Anhui International Joint Research Center for Metallurgical Process and System Science, Ma’anshan 243002, China)
Abstract: Copper nanosheets and sulfur particles were synthesized synchronously by electrolysis, after dissolving Cu2S in ChCl–thiourea (TU) deep eutectic solvent (DES) system. The optimized electrolysis conditions of 0.9 V, 80 °C, and 2 h resulted in the deposition of pure nano-sized copper sheets with a length of approximately 500 nm and a thickness of approximately 30 nm, and the production of sulfur particles with an average size of approximately 10 μm. The morphology of the cathodic products was significantly influenced by the electrolysis voltage. When Cu2S was introduced into ChCl-TU, it dissolved [CuCl2]- without disrupting the structure of the choline ion (Ch+). As the electrolysis time increased, the copper deposition changed from wire to sheet growth, with the growth direction from radial to epitaxial along the substrate and back to radial.
Key words: cuprous sulfide; deep eutectic solvent; separation; cooper nanosheet; electro-recovery