MoS2 nanosheet incorporated α-Fe2O3/ZnO nanocomposite with enhanced photocatalytic dye degradation and hydrogen production ability
Abstract
We have synthesized MoS$_{2}$ incorporated $\alpha$-Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$/ZnO nanocomposites by the hydrothermal process. The effect of incorporating ultrasonically exfoliated MoS$_{2}$ on the photocatalytic performance of $\alpha$-Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$/ZnO nanocomposites has been demonstrated. Structural, morphological and optical characteristics of the nanomaterials are investigated by performing Rietveld refinement of powder X-ray diffraction patterns, field emission scanning electron microscopy and UV-visible spectroscopy. The photoluminescence spectra of the nanocomposites show that the recombination of photogenerated electron-hole pairs is suppressed due to incorporating MoS$_{2}$ nanosheets. The ultrasonicated MoS$_{2}$ incorporated $\alpha$-Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$/ZnO nanocomposite shows 91% and 83% efficiency to degrade RhB dye and antibiotic ciprofloxacin under solar illumination. Active species trapping experiments reveal that the hydroxyl radicals play a significant role in RhB degradation. Likewise, the dye degradation efficiency, the amount of hydrogen produced by this nanocomposite via photocatalytic water splitting is also higher as compared to non-ultrasonicated MoS$_{2}$ incorporated $\alpha$-Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$/ZnO and $\alpha$-Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$/ZnO nanocomposites as well as Degussa P25 titania nanoparticles. This indicates the promising potential of the incorporation of ultrasonicated MoS$_{2}$ with $\alpha$-Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$/ZnO nanocomposite for generation of carbon-free hydrogen by water splitting. The substantial increase in the photocatalytic efficiency of $\alpha$-Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$/ZnO after incorporation of ultrasonicated MoS$_{2}$ can be attributed to its favorable band structure, large surface to volume ratio, effective segregation and migration of photogenerated electron-hole pairs at the interface of heterojunction and the active edge sites provided by few-layer MoS$_{2}$ nanosheets.
- Publication:
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RSC Advances
- Pub Date:
- December 2019
- DOI:
- 10.1039/C9RA07526G
- arXiv:
- arXiv:2111.07185
- Bibcode:
- 2019RSCAd...940357T
- Keywords:
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- Physics - Applied Physics;
- Condensed Matter - Materials Science
- E-Print:
- RSC Adv., 9, 40357, 2019