Facile One‐Pot Synthesis of Uniquely Designed Au−Cu2O Nanocomposites for Effective Catalytic Degradation of Azo Dyes

Abstract In the study of metal–semiconductor nanocomposites, the Au−Cu 2 O system is of significant interest because it can give rise to a variety of hybrid designs with pronounced activity for catalytic applications. In this work, a facile one‐pot synthetic strategy was developed to prepare Au−Cu 2 O nanocomposites with a unique core–shell nanoflower configuration, where a cluster of tiny Au nanoparticles constitutes the core, while larger cube‐like Cu 2 O nanoparticles surround this core in a petal‐like arrangement. Unlike previously published procedures that rely on two‐pot synthesis routes to generate the Au−Cu 2 O hybrid, the one‐pot synthesis protocol presented in this work is a more straightforward and less laborious approach that does not require a separate pre‐synthesis step. Furthermore, the synthesis can be conveniently performed at ambient conditions using nontoxic reagents. When tested as catalysts, the uniquely designed Au@Cu 2 O nanoflowers were found to effectively catalyze the borohydride‐mediated degradation of synthetic azo dyes (methyl orange and congo red). The hybrid exhibited superior catalytic activity relative to pristine Cu 2 O, underscoring the significance of creating a nanocomposite.