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In-situ synthesis of visible-light responsive Ag2O/graphene oxide nanocomposites and effect of graphene oxide content on its photocatalytic activity

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Abstract

Ag2O/graphene oxide nanocomposites, as efficient photocatalysts, were prepared by an in situ method using AgNO3 and graphene oxide as reactants under controlled atmosphere. Graphene oxide is synthesised via an eco-friendly method, and the Ag2O nanoparticles displaying elongated spherical morphology are randomly distributed on the surface of GO. The as-synthesised nanocomposites were characterised by different characterisation techniques. The results proved that the concentration of graphene oxide in starting solution displayed an important role in photocatalytic performance of Ag2O/graphene oxide nanocomposites. The nanocomposite materials were found to exhibit very improved photocatalytic activity for degrading methylene blue (MB) and Rhodamine B (Rh-B) under visible light irradiation. The photocatalytic activities of the composite were higher than that of P25 (a commercial TiO2 as a benchmark photocatalyst). The significantly improved photocatalytic activity of the nanocomposites could be attributed to the high charge separation and suppressed recombination of photogenerated electron-hole pairs due to GO. The effects of reaction parameters such as pH and the effect of different scavengers on the photocatalytic activity of the composite were studied.

This reflects high charge separation of photogenerated charge carriers through graphene oxide and thus increased photocatalytic activity by Ag2O/GO composites.

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Acknowledgments

Authors are highly thankful to NIT Srinagar for help and support. The Junior Research Fellowship award to Jahangir Ahmad from CSIR New Delhi is gratefully acknowledged (file no. 09/984(0003)). The authors gratefully acknowledge IIT Roorkee for their help and support.

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  1. Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology, Srinagar, J&K, 190 006, India

    Jahangir Ahmad & Kowsar Majid

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  1. Jahangir Ahmad
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Ahmad, J., Majid, K. In-situ synthesis of visible-light responsive Ag2O/graphene oxide nanocomposites and effect of graphene oxide content on its photocatalytic activity. Adv Compos Hybrid Mater 1, 374–388 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42114-018-0025-6

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