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Superparamagnetic Dy modified ZnFe2O4 magnetic nanophotocatalysts for the photocatalytic degradation of crystal violet pollutant

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Abstract

This study focuses on the development of superparamagnetic and multifunctional Dy doped ZnDyxFe2-xO4 (x = 0.0, 0.01, 0.02, 0.03) ferrite using sol–gel auto-combustion (SG) technique to remove the crystal violet pollutant found in textile industry wastewater using the adsorption and photocatalysis processes. The pure phased spinel cubic crystal structure was achieved for the prepared ferrite nanoparticles, as confirmed through the XRD results. The calculated crystallite size employing the Scherrer formula by taking the high intensity (311) peak was in the range of 26–35 nm. FESEM pictures confirm the presence of spherically shaped grains with definite grain boundaries. With the increasing doping content of Dy, the band gap for the produced photocatalysts was decreased from 1.47 to 1.11 eV. We demonstrated that our prepared Dy doped zinc ferrite nanoparticles behave as a soft magnetic material based on the magnetic measurement data by exhibiting the hysteresis behaviour with low rentivity and coercivity. This indicates the tendency of zinc nanoparticles to exhibit superparamagnetic behaviour at ambient temperature under an external magnetic field. ZnDy0.03Fe1.97O4 (x = 0.03) sample exhibits greater reactivity with a discolouring rate of 92.30% as compared to the ZnFe2O4 degradation rate of 83.07% during 120 min of irradiation under the natural sunlight. Furthermore, the adsorption/photocatalytic activities are amplified as the content of the dopant (Dy) rises, suggesting that the dopants are crucial to the photocatalytic breakdown and the adsorption of crystal violet (CV) dye. Using the antibacterial analysis, it was noted that ZnFe2O4 (x = 0.00) shows the zone of inhibition (ZOI) for both the strains, Bacillus subtilis and Salmonella typhi. With all the excellent magnetic, adsorption, photocatalytic, and antibacterial behaviours, the multifunctional magnetic nanomaterials will be highly beneficial for environmental and biological usages.

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The authors (SK, RJ) agree that the data supporting the findings of this article is available inside the article and/or references thereof. It will only be made available upon request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank to the Researchers Supporting Project number (RSP2024R29) at King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to backing this research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Advanced Chemical Sciences, Shoolini University, Solan, H.P., India

    Sanjay Kumar

  2. School of Physics and Materials Science, Shoolini University, Solan, H.P., India

    Rohit Jasrotia & Abhishek Kandwal

  3. Faculty of Science and Technology, ICFAI University, Solan, H.P., India

    Ankit Verma

  4. Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, 11451, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Jahangeer Ahmed & Saad M. Alshehri

  5. School of Biotechnology, Shoolini University, Solan, H.P., India

    Swati Kumari

  6. Department of Apparel and Textile Technology, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India

    Sachin Kumar Godara

  7. Applied Science Department, National Institute of Technical Teachers Training and Research, Sector 26, Chandigarh, 160019, India

    Pankaj Sharma

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Contributions

Sanjay Kumar (Synthesis and original draft writing), Rohit Jasrotia (Supervision, Conception, Fabrication, Investigation, Writing Original Draft, Review and Editing), Ankit Verma (Investigation), Abhishek Kandwal (Software), Jahangeer Ahmed (Review and Characterization), Saad M. Alshehri (Characterization), Swati Kumari (Investigation), Sachin Kumar Godara (Investigation), Pankaj Sharma (Reviewing and editing the final draft).

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Kumar, S., Jasrotia, R., Verma, A. et al. Superparamagnetic Dy modified ZnFe2O4 magnetic nanophotocatalysts for the photocatalytic degradation of crystal violet pollutant. Appl. Phys. A 130, 258 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-024-07431-9

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