synthesis of Cu2O and Cu nanoparticles on multi-wall carbon nanotubes

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been extensively studied because of their unique properties which include their electrical behavior and mechanical strength [1–7]. Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is a well-known technique for the preparation of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) [8]. The CVD method has many advantages over other methods such as producing a large quantity of MWCNTs, easily adjusting synthetic parameters such as the carbon source and the catalytic metal. Synthesis involves spraying a metallocence/hydrocarbon solution into a furnace under an inert to a slightly reductive gas flow [9]. Recently, studies of CNTs have focused on depositing metal or metal oxide nanoparticles onto the nanotube’s surface [10–14]. The physical and chemical properties of nanotube deposited nanoparticles may be changed to obtain desired properties. Currently, there is interest in using clean and renewable non-fossil energy sources; solar energy is the most easily obtainable and inexhaustible source; therefore, solar energy converters have attracted increased attention. Because of this, it is not surprising that intensive research has been done to find new low-cost materials that can be used in the fabrication of solar conversion devices [15, 16]. Cuprous oxide (Cu2O) has attracted interest as a promising material for generating cheap photovoltaic power because of its theoretical solar cell efficiency, material abundance, and simplicity in forming a semiconducting layer. Cu2O is believed to be a promising material for the fabrication of photo-electrochemical cells (PECs) [13, 17, 18]. PECs convert solar energy into storable chemical energy as hydrogen by water photo-electrolysis. In this work, we report the preparation of stable cuprous oxide nanocrystals on the MWCNT’s surface