Enhanced photo catalytic degradation of methyl orange using p–n Co<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub>-TiO<sub>2</sub> hetero-junction as catalyst
Muhammad Saeed, Muhammad Usman, Muhammad Ibrahim, Atta ul Haq, Iltaf Khan, Hina Ijaz, Fiza Akram
Abstract
Abstract Photo catalytic degradation of pollutants is one of the techniques used for treatment of dye contaminated wastewater. TiO 2 has attracted much attention as photo catalyst for treatment of contaminated water. In this study, the photo catalytic performance of TiO 2 has been enhanced by formation of p–n Co 3 O 4 -TiO 2 hetero-junction. The p–n Co 3 O 4 -TiO 2 hetero-junction was prepared by wet incipient impregnation method and characterized by various techniques. The photo catalytic activity of prepared composite was evaluated by photo degradation of methyl orange. The as prepared Co 3 O 4 -TiO 2 composite was found as effective catalyst than Co 3 O 4 and TiO 2 . The higher photo catalytic activity was attributed to p–n junction formed between Co 3 O 4 and TiO 2 . The degradation data was analyzed according to Eley–Rideal mechanism in terms of 1st and 2nd order kinetics.