Effects of Cu Doping on the Microstructure, Room-Temperature Desulfurization Performance and Reaction Mechanism of Nano-ZnO

S adsorption and activation. Mechanistic studies demonstrate that, unlike pure nano-ZnO, where oxygen vacancy-mediated reactions dominate, the CuO/ZnO system follows a chemisorption-driven pathway involving the formation of copper sulfides and highly reactive polysulfide intermediates. Furthermore, the presence of oxygen significantly influences the reaction behavior, with an optimal oxygen concentration (~10%) maximizing desulfurization performance by balancing the generation of reactive oxygen species and sulfur intermediates. This work provides new insights into the design of high-performance ZnO-based desulfurizers and highlights the critical role of Cu-induced mechanism transformation.