Insight into mechanism of excellent visible-light photocatalytic activity of CuO/MgO/ZnO nanocomposite for advanced solution of environmental remediation

Muhammad Imran; Mohsin Raza; Hadia Noor; Sadia Muniza Faraz; Ali Raza; Umar Farooq; Mohammad Ehtisham Khan; Syed Kashif Ali; Omer Y Bakather; Wahid Ali; Abdullateef H Bashiri; Waleed Zakri

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142224

Insight into mechanism of excellent visible-light photocatalytic activity of CuO/MgO/ZnO nanocomposite for advanced solution of environmental remediation

Chemosphere. 2024 May 8:359:142224. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142224. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Centre of Excellence in Solid State Physics, University of Punjab, Lahore, 54590, Pakistan.
² Additive Manufacturing Institute, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518060, People's Republic of China.
³ Department of Electronic Engineering, NED University of Engineering & Technology, Karachi, 75270, Pakistan.
⁴ Department of Chemistry, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Baghdad-ul-Jadeed Campus, Bahawalpur, 63100, Pakistan.
⁵ Department of Chemical Engineering Technology, College of Applied Industrial Technology, Jazan University, Jazan 45142, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: mekhan@jazanu.edu.sa.
⁶ Department of Physical Sciences, Chemistry Division, College of Science, Jazan University, P.O. Box. 114, Jazan 45142, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Nanotechnology Research Unit, College of Science, Jazan University, P.O. Box. 114, Jazan 45142, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
⁷ Chemical Engineering Department, College of Engineering and Computer Sciences, Jazan University, Jazan 45142, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Department of Chemical Engineering Technology, College of Applied Industrial Technology, Jazan University, Jazan 45142, Saudi Arabia.
⁹ Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, Jazan University, P. O. Box 114, Jazan 45142, Saudi Arabia.

PMID: 38723693
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142224

Abstract

Environmental remediation has sought several innovative ways for the treatment of wastewater and captivated researchers around the globe towards it. Through this study, we aim to proceed with the efforts to foster sustainable and feasible ways for the treatment of wastewater. In this work, we report the sol-gel synthesis of CuO/MgO/ZnO nanocomposite and carry out their systematic characterization with the help of state-of-the-art analytical techniques, such as FTIR, SEM, TEM, PL, XRD, Raman, and AFM. The SEM along with TEM and AFM provided useful insights into the surface morphology of the synthesized nanocomposite on both 2D and 3D surfaces and concluded the well-dispersed behavior of the nanocomposite. The characteristic functional groups responsible for carrying out the reaction of Cu-O, Mg-O, and Zn-O were identified by FTIR spectroscopy. On the other hand, crystal size, dislocation density, and microstrain of the nanocomposite were calculated by XRD. For optical studies, photoluminescence spectroscopy was performed. Once the characterization of the nanocomposite was done, they were eventually treated against the toxic organic dye, methylene blue. The calculated rate constant values of k for CuO was 2.48 × 10^-3 min^-1, for CuO/MgO (2.04 × 10^-3 min^-1), for CuO/ZnO (1.82 × 10^-3 min^-1) and CuO/MgO/ZnO was found to be 2.00 × 10^-3 min^-1. It has become increasingly evident that nanotechnology can be used in various facets of modern life, and its implementation in wastewater treatment has recently received much attention.

Keywords: Metal oxides; Morphology; Photocatalysis; Photocatalytic mechanism; Water treatment.