Mixed metal ferrite (Mn_0.6Zn_0.4Fe₂O₄) intercalated g-C₃N₄ nanocomposite: efficient sunlight driven photocatalyst for methylene blue degradation

Abstract

Visible active mixed metal ferrite intercalated semiconductor photocatalyst Mn 0.6 Zn 0.4 Fe 2 O 4 /g-C 3 N 4 was prepared via facile hydrothermal and liquid assembly method for methylene blue (MB) dye degradation. The prepared samples were well characterized in term of their functional groups, crystallinity, elemental analysis, surface morphology using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction spectroscopy, energy dispersive x-ray, and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. The optical response of catalysts was checked by estimating the energy band gap (E g ) of semiconductor photocatalysts using UV-vis spectroscopy. The photoluminescence spectroscopy was also performed to estimate the reduction in emission intensity after insertion of g-C 3 N 4 into Mn 0.6 Zn 0.4 Fe 2 O 4. The novel composition of Mn 0.6 Zn 0.4 Fe 2 O 4 with g-C 3 N 4, improved the optical response of pristine photocatalysts due to the reduction in the energy band gap and insertion of heterojunction. The surface area analysis of Mn 0.6 Zn 0.4 Fe 2 O 4 and Mn 0.6 Zn 0.4 Fe 2 O 4 /g-C 3 N 4 were acquired by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller. Point zero charge was also determined to observe the surface behavior of composite under different solution pH. Various parameters such as pH, catalyst dose, oxidant dose, irradiation time and initial dye concentration were optimized, and their effects were studied in photo-Fenton process. It was observed that 98% MB dye was degraded under optimized conditions (pH=8, composite dose=50 mg/100 ml, oxidant dose=7 mM, initial dye conc.=10 ppm, and irradiation time=120 min). The results showed that when the ferrites of mixed metals (Mn, Zn) were used with g-C 3 N 4 their photocatalytic activity enhanced due to mutual effect of both mixed metals ferrite and g-C 3 N 4 , which is considerably higher than their individual effect already reported. Furthermore, the combined effect of independent variables was evaluated by response surface methodology.

Synthesis, Characterization, and Photocatalytic Performance of ZnFe2O4-g-C3N4 Composites for Tetracycline Removal from Contaminated Water

“…Tese results confrmed the formation of nanoparticles since the average crystal size ranged between 4.63 and 8.51 nm. Tese values were comparable to the average crystallite size results obtained by Saeed et al for Mn 0.6 Zn 0.4 Fe 2 O 4 /g-C 3 N 4 photocatalyst which ranged between 5.8 and 6.96 nm [47].…”

“…It can be observed that ZnFe 2 O 4 particles consisted of almost spherical nodules with a diameter ranging between 30.71 nm and 50.97 nm. Tese particles are highly agglomerated and interlock to form clusters, which could be attributed to the magnetic character of spinel ferrites [47,51].…”

Accelerated Decoloration of Organic Dyes from Wastewater Using Ternary Metal/g-C3N4/ZnO Nanocomposites: An Investigation of Impact of g-C3N4 Concentration and Ni and Mn Doping

“…Also, a band at 2355 cm −1 can be accredited to adsorbed carbon dioxide in all the samples [43]. The FT-IR spectra of the Ni/GZ and Mn/GZ composites contain the peaks corresponding to both ZnO and g-C3N4, signifying that the composites were formed successfully [43][44][45].…”