Enhancing the Photocatalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue with Graphene Oxide-Encapsulated g-C<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub>/ZnO Ternary Composites
Muhammad Hassan Shakoor, Muhammad Bilal Shakoor, Asim Jilani, Toheed Ahmed, Muhammad Rizwan, Mohsin Raza Dustgeer, Javed Iqbal, Muhammad Zahid, Jean Wan Hong Yong, Muhammad Zahid, Jean Wan Hong Yong
Abstract
High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide Methylene blue (MB) is a toxic contaminant present in wastewater. Here, we prepared various composites of graphene oxide (GO) with graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ) and zinc oxide (ZnO) for the degradation of MB. In comparison to ZnO (22.9%) and g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO (76.0%), the ternary composites of GO/g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO showed 90% photocatalytic degradation of MB under a light source after 60 min. The experimental setup and parameters were varied to examine the process and effectiveness of MB degradation. Based on the results of the experiments, a proposed photocatalytic degradation process that explains the roles of GO, ZnO, and g-C 3 N 4 in improving the photocatalytic efficacy of newly prepared GO/g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO was explored. Notably, the g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO nanocomposite’s surface was uniformly covered with ZnO nanorods. The images of the samples clearly demonstrated the porous nature of GO/g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO photocatalysts, and even after being mixed with GO, the g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO composite retained the layered structure of the original material. The catalyst’s porous structure plausibly enhanced the degradation of the contaminants. The high-clarity production of g-C 3 N 4 and the effectiveness of the synthesis protocol were later validated by the absence of any trace contamination in the energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) results. The composition of the ZnO elements and their spectra were revealed by the EDS results of the prepared ZnO nanorods, g-C 3 N 4 /ZnO, and GO/g-C 3 N 4/ ZnO. The outcomes indicated that the nanocomposites were highly uncontaminated and contained all necessary elements to facilitate the transformative process. The results of this experiment could be applied at a large scale, thus proving the effectiveness of photocatalysts for the removal of dyes.