ZnS/Fe₂O₃/Ag Ternary Nanocomposite Photocatalyst for the Degradation of Dyes Under Visible Light

Abstract

Recently the researchers have shown great interest on photocatalysis, especially in dyes degradation by nanocomposites under visible light. In this work, the photocatalytic degradation of dye pollutants such as Malachite green (MG) and Eosin blue (EB) by zinc sulfide based ternary nanocomposite (ZnS–Fe₂O₃–Ag) under visible light irradiation, was reported for the first time. As-synthesized nanocomposite was studied for its structural, morphological and optical properties by using different instrumental techniques such as XRD, FTIR, FESEM, EDS, TGA, and UV-DRS. The obtained results apparently stated that the formation of pure phase of ZnS/Fe/Ag confirmed by XRD and the spherical shape obtained from FESEM. The presence of Zn, S, Fe, and Ag in prepared composite according to EDS without impurities, confirmed that pure ternary nanocomposite was formed. The bandgap of prepared composite is found to be 2.33 eV, which is striven for visible light, resulting in the better photocatalytic activity towards the degradation of dye pollutants. The optimized conditions for degradation of both dyes are alkaline pH, and 30 mg catalyst load. The photocatalytic degradation of both MG and EB dyes by prepared nanocomposite was completed in one hour without adding of any oxidizing agent.