scholarly journals Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity of Ficus elastica Mediated Zinc Oxide-Zirconium Dioxide Nanocatalyst at Elevated Calcination Temperature: Physicochemical Study

Catalysts ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 1481
Author(s):  
Sirajul Haq ◽  
Humma Afsar ◽  
Israf Ud Din ◽  
Pervaiz Ahmad ◽  
Mayeen Uddin Khandaker ◽  
...  

The photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine 6G dye was achieved using a Ficus elastica (F. elastic) leaf extract mediated zinc oxide-zirconium dioxide nanocatalyst (ZnO-ZrO2 NC) under stimulated solar light, resulting in a substantial increase in photocatalytic activity at the highest calcination temperature. The crystal phase and crystallite size were determined using an X-ray diffractometer (XRD), and the degree of crystallinity was observed to rise with increasing calcination temperature. Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) was used to investigate the elemental composition and purity of ZnO-ZrO2 NC. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to investigate the surface morphology, and the morphological characteristics were altered when the calcination temperature was varied. For the ZnO-ZrO2 NC calcined at 100, 300, 600, and 900 °C, the average grain size determined from SEM images is 79.56 nm, 98.78 (2) nm, 54.86 (2) nm, and 67.43 (2) nm, respectively. Using diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) data, the optical band gap energy was calculated using a Tauc’s plot. The ZnO in ZnO-ZrO2 NC calcined at 100, 300, 600, and 900 °C had band gap energies of 3.31, 3.36, 3.38, and 3.29 eV. Similarly, ZrO2 in ZnO-ZrO2 NC calcined at 100, 300, 600, and 900 °C had band gap energies of 3.96, 3.99, 3.97, and 4.01 eV, respectively. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was used to identify the presence of various functional groups. The photocatalytic activity was also examined in relation to calcination temperature, pH, starting concentration, and catalyst dosage. Enhanced photocatalytic activity was observed at pH 11 and 15 ppm initial concentration with a catalyst dose of 25 mg. The photocatalytic activity of the sample calcined at 900 °C was the highest, with 98.94 percent of the dye mineralized in 330 min at a degradation rate of 0.01261/min.

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (17) ◽  
pp. 1850185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yun-Hui Si ◽  
Yu Xia ◽  
Ya-Yun Li ◽  
Shao-Ke Shang ◽  
Xin-Bo Xiong ◽  
...  

A series of BiFeO3 and BiFe[Formula: see text]Mn[Formula: see text]O3 (x = 0, 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.08, 0.10) were synthesized by a hydrothermal method. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and their photocatalytic activity was studied by photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue in aqueous solution under visible light irradiation. The band gap of BiFeO3 was significantly decreased from 2.26 eV to 1.90 eV with the doping of Mn. Furthermore, the 6% Mn-doped BiFeO3 photocatalyst exhibited the best activity with a degradation rate of 94% after irradiation for 100 min. The enhanced photocatalytic activity with Mn doping could be attributed to the enhanced optical absorption, increment of surface reactive sites and reduction of electron–hole recombination. Our results may be conducive to design more efficient photocatalysts responsive to visible light among narrow band gap semiconductors.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Mioduska ◽  
Anna Zielińska-Jurek ◽  
Marcin Janczarek ◽  
Jan Hupka

Series of WO3/TiO2nanocomposites were obtained by hydrothermal method followed by calcination in the temperature range from 400°C to 900°C. The characteristics of photocatalysts by X-ray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) showed that increasing the calcination temperature from 400 to 900°C resulted in change of photocatalytic activity under UV-Vis light. Moreover, the amount of WO3crystalline phase and amorphous phase in WO3/TiO2aggregates, as revealed by XRD analysis, was dependent on the calcination temperature. The WO3/TiO2samples with 8 mol% load of WO3in respect to TiO2calcinated at 500 and 800°C possess the highest photocatalytic activity in reaction of phenol degradation, which is about 1.2 and 1.5 times that with calcination at 400°C. The increase in calcination temperature above 400°C resulted in increase of WO3crystallinity and reduction of the amount of amorphous phase in the nanocomposite structure. Moreover, the annealing of nanocomposites above 700°C decreases the value of optical band gap energies of obtained WO3/TiO2nanomaterials.


Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 1149
Author(s):  
Szilvia Fodor ◽  
Lucian Baia ◽  
Kornélia Baán ◽  
Gábor Kovács ◽  
Zsolt Pap ◽  
...  

In the present work, shape tailored Cu2O microparticles were synthesized by changing the nature of the reducing agent and studied subsequently. d-(+)-glucose, d-(+)-fructose, d-(+)xylose, d-(+)-galactose, and d-(+)-arabinose were chosen as reducing agents due to their different reducing abilities. The morpho-structural characteristics were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), while their photocatalytic activity was evaluated by methyl orange degradation under visible light (120 min). The results show that the number of carbon atoms in the sugars affect the morphology and particle size (from 250 nm to 1.2 µm), and differences in their degree of crystallinity and photocatalytic activity were also found. The highest activity was observed when glucose was used as the reducing agent.


2012 ◽  
Vol 476-478 ◽  
pp. 1882-1888
Author(s):  
Ke Lei Zhang ◽  
Rui Jie Zhao ◽  
Qian Kun Lei ◽  
Yan Chun Hu

Spinel Zn2SnO4 photocatalysts have been prepared by the solid state reaction. as-prepared samples were characterized by power X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and photocatalytic activity measurement. The results show that the reaction temperature have significant effects on the Zn2SnO4 photocatalytic activity . It has also been found that the distribution of the cations in Zn2SnO4 crystal lattice changes with the increase of calcination temperature, causing the local structural fine adjustment that associated with the photocatalytic properties.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 537
Author(s):  
Siham Lhimr ◽  
Saidati Bouhlassa ◽  
Bouchaib Ammary

ZnO is one of the most studied semiconductor materials because of its interesting chemicals, and from a technological point of view, mainly as a consequence of their outstanding properties, such as wurtzite type, non-toxic nature, large band gap, low cost, and environment-friendly. In this work, the ZnO/C composite was synthesized by a simple and fast low-temperature method; the solid product was calcination temperature at 100 to 400 °C. The influence of variation in calcination temperature was studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The X-ray diffraction patterns indicated a high crystallinity and a nanocrystalline size of the ZnO/C composite hexagonal structure of wurtzite. The SEM image of the samples showed that the powder has a spherical structure of flakes aggregated in the common nucleus like a grid. The sphere consists of spindle and flower-like structures. The optical properties were determined by UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and it was found that the band gap energy of ZnO/C composite increase from 3.210 to 3.329 eV with an increase in calcination temperature from 100 to 400 °C. FTIR spectra and EDS analysis showed that the existence of carbon in the composite.


2012 ◽  
Vol 486 ◽  
pp. 124-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Tong ◽  
Pei Song Tang

The FeVO4 nanoparticles were synthesized by a precipitation process. The FeVO4 nanoparticles were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). It was found that the prepared FeVO4 nanoparticles show an average grain size of 50-80 nm in diameter, and strong visible-light absorption with absorption onset of 515 nm, indicating a narrow optical band gap of 2.4 eV. Consequently, the FeVO4 nanoparticles show high visible-light photocatalytic activity for decomposition of methyl orange.


Separations ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Chukwuka Bethel Anucha ◽  
Ilknur Altin ◽  
Emin Bacaksız ◽  
Tayfur Kucukomeroglu ◽  
Masho Hilawie Belay ◽  
...  

Abatement of contaminants of emerging concerns (CECs) in water sources has been widely studied employing TiO2 based heterogeneous photocatalysis. However, low quantum energy yield among other limitations of titania has led to its modification with other semiconductor materials for improved photocatalytic activity. In this work, a 0.05 wt.% CuWO4 over TiO2 was prepared as a powder composite. Each component part synthesized via the sol-gel method for TiO2, and CuWO4 by co-precipitation assisted hydrothermal method from precursor salts, underwent gentle mechanical agitation. Homogenization of the nanopowder precursors was performed by zirconia ball milling for 2 h. The final material was obtained after annealing at 500 °C for 3.5 h. Structural and morphological characterization of the synthesized material has been achieved employing X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infra-red (FTIR) spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) N2 adsorption–desorption analysis, Scanning electron microscopy-coupled Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis DRS) for optical characterization. The 0.05 wt.% CuWO4-TiO2 catalyst was investigated for its photocatalytic activity over carbamazepine (CBZ), achieving a degradation of almost 100% after 2 h irradiation. A comparison with pure TiO2 prepared under those same conditions was made. The effect of pH, chemical scavengers, H2O2 as well as contaminant ion effects (anions, cations), and humic acid (HA) was investigated, and their related influences on the photocatalyst efficiency towards CBZ degradation highlighted accordingly.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Cruz-González ◽  
O. Calzadilla ◽  
J. Roque ◽  
F. Chalé-Lara ◽  
J. K. Olarte ◽  
...  

In the last decade, the urgent need to environmental protection has promoted the development of new materials with potential applications to remediate air and polluted water. In this work, the effect of the TiO2 thin layer over MoS2 material in photocatalytic activity is reported. We prepared different heterostructures, using a combination of electrospinning, solvothermal, and spin-coating techniques. The properties of the samples were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms, UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-Vis-DRS), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The adsorption and photocatalytic activity were evaluated by discoloration of rhodamine B solution. The TiO2-MoS2/TiO2 heterostructure presented three optical absorption edges at 1.3 eV, 2.28 eV, and 3.23 eV. The high adsorption capacity of MoS2 was eliminated with the addition of TiO2 thin film. The samples show high photocatalytic activity in the visible-IR light spectrum.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huang Liu ◽  
Yanhua Zhang ◽  
Hongtao Yang ◽  
Wei Xiao ◽  
Lanlan Sun

Using the common natural cellulose substance (filter paper) and triblock copolymer (Pluronic P123) micelles as dual templates, porous titania nanotubes with enhanced photocatalytic activity have been successfully synthesized through sol-gel methods. Firstly, P123 micelles were adsorbed onto the surfaces of cellulose nanofibers of filter paper, followed by hydrolysis and condensation of tetrabutyl titanate around these micelles to form titania layer. After calcination to remove the organic templates, hierarchical titania nanotubes with pores in the walls were obtained. The sample was characterized by X-ray diffraction pattern (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nitrogen adsorption/desorption, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Ultraviolet-Visible Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy (UV-Vis DRS), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). As compared with commercial P25 catalyst, the porous titania nanotubes prepared by this method displayed significantly enhanced photocatalytic activity for degrading methyl orange under UV irradiation. Within 10 minutes, the porous titania nanotubes are able to degrade over 70% of the original MO, while the value for the commercial Degussa P25 is only about 33%.


2011 ◽  
Vol 335-336 ◽  
pp. 1385-1390 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuo Wiei Zhao ◽  
Hui Xu ◽  
Hua Ming Li ◽  
Yuan Guo Xu

In order to improve the photocatalytic activity, Co was successfully loaded into Ag3VO4 by using impregnation process. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The XRD and SEM–EDS analyses revealed that Co ion was dispersed on Ag3VO4. The DRS results indicated that the absorption edge of the Co–Ag3VO4 catalyst shifted to longer wavelength. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of Co–Ag3VO4 for Methylene Blue(MB) dye degradation under visible light irradiation was due to its wider absorption edge and higher separation rate of photo-generated electron and holes. In the experimental conditions, it is demonstrated that the MB was effectively degraded by more than 95% within 40 min when the Co–Ag3VO4 catalyst was calcined at 300°C with 1 wt.% Co content.


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