Abstract
The development of eco-friendly photocatalysts is gaining attention as an effective approach for degrading organic pollutants. In the present study, the composite materials are composed of various components with varying structures that combine to enhance their characteristics and widen their applications. This work uses the hydrothermal method for the fabrication of a novel and steady SiO2/g-C3N4 photocatalyst. The amount of SiO2 was fixed, and graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) was varied in the ratio (1:x, where x = 1, 2, 3) and abbreviated as SCN1, SCN2, and SCN3. The optical properties, surface morphology, and structural analysis of the prepared nanocomposites were studied using various techniques such as FTIR, TGA, X-ray diffraction, and ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy. The results show that SCN2 nanocomposites significantly improved the photocatalytic activity, with a degradation efficiency of 70% for auramine O and 84.6% for xylenol orange dye under visible light irradiation, which is a result of their large surface area and efficient electron–hole separation rate.
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Acknowledgements
The authors are thankful to Monika Dhanda, Surface Lab, Department of Chemistry, Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology, Murthal, for electrochemical analysis; Central Instrumentation Lab (Lovely Professional University) for TGA and FTIR testing; and SAIF (AIIMS, New Delhi) for morphological studies.
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Anshu Sharma acknowledges the University Grants Commission, Ministry of Education, Govt. of India, for providing Start-Up-Grant reference no. 30–545/2021 (BSR).
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Sachin Shoran: conceptualization; methodological analysis; investigation; roles/writing—original draft; writing—review and editing. Sudesh Chaudhary and Anshu Sharma: supervision; project administration; conceptualization; methodology; roles/writing—original draft; writing—review and editing.
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Shoran, S., Sharma, A. & Chaudhary, S. Visible light enhanced photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants with SiO2/g-C3N4 nanocomposite for environmental applications. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 98732–98746 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-24837-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-24837-1