Synthesis of strontium oxide-zinc oxide nanocomposites by Co-precipitation method and its application for degradation of malachite green dye under direct sunlight

Govindharaj Anandhakumari; Palanisamy Jayabal; Athinarayanan Balasankar; Subramaniyan Ramasundaram; Tae Hwan Oh; Kanakaraj Aruchamy; Parashuram Kallem; Veerababu Polisetti

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20824

Synthesis of strontium oxide-zinc oxide nanocomposites by Co-precipitation method and its application for degradation of malachite green dye under direct sunlight

Heliyon. 2023 Oct 11;9(10):e20824. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20824. eCollection 2023 Oct.

Authors

Govindharaj Anandhakumari¹, Palanisamy Jayabal¹, Athinarayanan Balasankar¹, Subramaniyan Ramasundaram², Tae Hwan Oh², Kanakaraj Aruchamy², Parashuram Kallem³, Veerababu Polisetti⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Physics, Gobi Arts & Science College, Gobichettipalayam, Erode, Tamilnadu-638 453, India.
² School of Chemical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan 38541, South Korea.
³ Department of Environmental and Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Abu Dhabi University, Abu Dhabi, P.O. Box 59911, United Arab Emirates.
⁴ Wallenberg Wood Science Center, Department of Fibre and Polymer Technology, School of Engineering Sciences in Chemistry, Biotechnology and Health, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, SE-100 44 Stockholm, Sweden.

Abstract

Photocatalysts workable under direct sunlight are the safe and cost-effective option for water purification. The nanocomposites of strontium oxide and zinc oxide (SZ NCs) were synthesized using coprecipitation method. The respective precursors of SZ NCs were subjected to alkaline hydrolysis and subsequently thermally treated to yield SZ NCs. The SZ NCs with different ZnO composition was synthesized by varying the concentration of ZnO precursor from 0.2 to 1 M. The structural properties of SZ NCs evaluated using X-Ray diffraction (XRD), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and Differential thermal analysis DTA). The optical properties of SZ NCs studied using ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopic study. The trend observed in the intensity of XRD peaks indicated the occurrence of Zn doping in the crystalline lattice of SrO and the formation of SrO-ZnO composite. Upon incorporation of 1 M of ZnO precursor, the grain size of the SrO was decreased from 49.3 to 27.6 nm. The weight loss in the thermal analysis indicates the removal of carbonates from the sample upon heating and shows the formation of an oxide structure. UV-Vis spectra confirmed that the presence of SrO enhanced the sunlight absorption of SZ NCs. The increase in the composition of ZnO precursors increased the bandgap of SrO (2.09 eV) to the level of ZnO (3.14 eV). SZ NCs exhibited heterostructure morphology, where the nanosized domains with varying shapes (layered and rod-like) were observed. Under direct sunlight conditions, SZ NCs prepared using 1 M/0.6 M of SrO/ZnO precursors exhibited 15-20 % higher photocatalytic efficiency than neat SrO and ZnO. In precise, 1 mg of this SZ NC was degraded 98 % of malachite green dye dissolved in water (10 ppm) under direct sunlight. Additionally, the thermal stability results showed that 18 % decomposition was obtained due to the degradation impurities in SrO/ZnO catalysts and the XRD results revealed that no structural change is obtained in SrO/ZnO photocatalysts after stability test. The SZ NCs can be effectively used as safe and economic sunlight photocatalysts for water purification in remote areas without the electricity.

Keywords: Dye degradation and malachite green; Nanocomposites; Photocatalyst; Strontium oxide; Sunlight; Zinc oxide.