2D g-C3N4 nanosheets functionalized with nickel-doped ZrO2 nanoparticles for synergistic photodegradation of toxic chemical pollutants

Rui Wang; Ch Venkata Reddy; Aashna Nagar; Soumen Basu; Nagaraj P Shetti; Bai Cheolho; Jaesool Shim; Raghava Reddy Kakarla

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.139955

2D g-C₃N₄ nanosheets functionalized with nickel-doped ZrO₂ nanoparticles for synergistic photodegradation of toxic chemical pollutants

Chemosphere. 2023 Nov:341:139955. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.139955. Epub 2023 Aug 29.

Authors

Rui Wang¹, Ch Venkata Reddy², Aashna Nagar³, Soumen Basu⁴, Nagaraj P Shetti⁵, Bai Cheolho⁶, Jaesool Shim⁷, Raghava Reddy Kakarla⁸

Affiliations

¹ School of Mechanical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan buk-do, 38541, South Korea.
² School of Mechanical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan buk-do, 38541, South Korea. Electronic address: cvphy@gmail.com.
³ School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology, Patiala, 147004, India.
⁴ School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology, Patiala, 147004, India; Affiliate Faculty-TIET-Virginia Tech Center of Excellence in Emerging Materials, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala, 147004, India.
⁵ Department of Chemistry, School of Advanced Sciences, KLE Technological University, Vidyanagar, Hubballi, 580 031, Karnataka, India.
⁶ School of Mechanical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan buk-do, 38541, South Korea. Electronic address: chbai@yu.ac.kr.
⁷ School of Mechanical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan buk-do, 38541, South Korea. Electronic address: jshim@ynu.ac.kr.
⁸ School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia. Electronic address: reddy.chem@gmail.com.

PMID: 37652247
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.139955

Abstract

The photocatalytic removal of toxic chemical pollutants from wastewater has garnered significant attention in recent times owing to its notable removal efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and eco-friendly characteristics. Nonetheless, this catalytic process necessitates augmented charge separation and distinctive interface properties to facilitate catalytic reactions for water treatment applications. Therefore, in the current study, novel g-C₃N₄/Ni-doped ZrO₂ heterostructured hybrid catalysts have been synthesized via a hydrothermal approach. Microscopic studies reveal that ZrO₂ nanospheres were distributed on the layered-like 2D structure of g-C₃N₄ nanosheets. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-DRS), and photoluminescence (PL) characterizations were employed to investigate the impact of bandgap, electron-hole recombination, charge transfer, and interface properties on the catalytic performance of g-C₃N₄/ZrO₂ hybrids. XRD analysis confirmed that the Ni-ions do not disturb the host lattice crystal structure and heterostructure development between g-C₃N₄ and doped ZrO₂ sample. Structurally, Ni-doped nanoparticles were found to be equally superficially dispersed on g-C₃N₄ sheets. Optical analysis results suggest that the hybrid catalyst possesses a narrow bandgap of 2.56 eV. The synthesized photocatalyst degraded rhodamine B (RhB) and tetracycline (TC) with ∼92% and ∼89% degradation efficiency, respectively. Heterostructured hybrid catalysts showed superior degradation rate constants than other catalysts. This might be attributed to the sufficient separation of electron-hole due to the development of a heterojunction. The radical scavenging experiments suggested that O₂^●- and ^●OH radicals contributed substantially to the dye elimination activity of the composite. Therefore, the synthesized novel nanohybrid catalysts in this study present an efficient and straightforward synthesis method for the efficient removal of toxins from wastewater under visible light irradiation.

Keywords: Carbon materials; Doped ZrO(2) nanoparticles; Graphitic carbon nitride; Hazardous water pollutants; Photocatalysis; Rhodamine B; Tetracycline; Wastewater treatment.

MeSH terms

Environmental Pollutants*
Light
Nanospheres*
Nickel
Photolysis
Wastewater

Substances

Nickel
Wastewater
Environmental Pollutants