A comparative photocatalytic degradation study of cationic and anionic dyes using ZnIn₂S₄ photocatalyst

Abstract

Semiconductor mediated photocatalysis has emerged as a promising solution for dye degradation and environmental remediation. Zinc Indium Sulfide (ZnIn2S4, ZIS) is a benign, eco-friendly, visible-light-responsive photocatalyst, exhibiting excellent optoelectronic properties. In this work, we present a scalable, low temperature and template-free chemical aqueous solution method for the synthesis of ZIS. The obtained powder sample was used for a comparative dye degradation study of cationic (Malachite green) and anionic (Congo red) dye. The higher photocatalytic efficiency of ZIS is due to the higher BET surface area (55.042 m2 g−1) and low band gap (2.3 eV). Under Sunlight, almost 80 percent degradation occurs within 20 min of the experiment for both Malachite green (MG) and anionic Congo red (CR) dye, outperforming previously reported results. Scavenger studies were used to figure out the radicals involved in photocatalytic mechanics and to come up with viable photocatalytic degradation routes. The reusability and stability of ZIS were carried out up to the 5th cycles. Our result revealed that ZIS possesses high stability, reusability, and efficient potential to be an effective dye degradation photocatalyst.

Recent developments in phycosynthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles for biomedicine and environmental applications

“…The unique features of ZnO NPs, such as their broad band gap, high electron mobility, and high visible transparency, help facilitate the use of ZnO NPs in the production of fabrics that are resistant to the damaging effects of ultraviolet (UV) rays [9]. Other benefits of choosing ZnO NPs that have recently been revealed are their optical properties, high stability, catalytic activity, high surface energy, optoelectronics property, detection of biomolecules, etc [20,21]. Among all the metal oxide NPs synthesised so far, ZnO NPs possess excellent benefits and can be applied in different fields of science.…”

Simple single reactor synthesis of nickel (II)-cobalt (II) ferrite composites with biochar and their photocatalytic properties

“…The removal of such contaminants is difficult; in particular, the widely used adsorption process requires the disposal of adsorbed substances after it, which creates additional difficulties. One of the promising methods for aqueous solution purification from stable pollutants is advanced oxidation process [1,2]. The search for active catalysts and methods for their preparation is an important task for chemistry and ecology.…”

“…Ferrites are widely used as electrocatalysts for oxygen production [6], gas sensors [7], anodes of lithium current sources [8], oxygen carrier for cyclic chemical oxidation [9], microwave radiation absorbers [10]. The phenomenon of photocatalytic activity established for ferrites in several important reactions is widely discussed in scientific literature [1,2,[11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. In particular, nickel ferrite is used for the photocatalytic production of hydrogen from water [11], purification of aqueous solutions from organic pollutants: remazol red [12], methylene blue [14,18], methyl orange [2,19].…”

“…The phenomenon of photocatalytic activity established for ferrites in several important reactions is widely discussed in scientific literature [1,2,[11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. In particular, nickel ferrite is used for the photocatalytic production of hydrogen from water [11], purification of aqueous solutions from organic pollutants: remazol red [12], methylene blue [14,18], methyl orange [2,19].…”

“…Also a combination of solid-phase and additional methods is used, for example, with microwave irradiation [13,22], solvothermal methods [16,[23][24][25]. For the synthesis of fine-crystalline materials, sol-gel technology is used [2,14,[26][27][28][29][30] where sucrose [31], onion extract [2], glycine [27][28][29], citric acid can be used as a template [9,29].…”