| Abstrakt: |
In this paper, a magnetically separable CoFe2 O4 /SnO2 nanocomposite was synthesized by a twostep procedure, first, the synthesis of CoFe2 O4 and SnO2 nanoparticles by wet chemical precipitation method and second, the preparation of CoFe2 O4 /SnO2 nanocomposites by solid-state reaction method. The resulting photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen adsorption– desorption analyses, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The crystallization investigated by XRD confirmed the existence of both SnO2 and CoFe2 O4 phases, which was further confirmed by EDX. The energy band gap of 5% CoFe2 O4 /SnO2 nanocomposite observed by UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy was estimated to be 3.7 eV, which was comparable with that of SnO2 . The photocatalytic performance of the as-synthesized magnetic CoFe2 O4 /SnO2 nanocomposites was investigated through methylene blue degradation reaction under UV irradiation. The CoFe2 O4 /SnO2 nanocomposite containing 5 wt.% CoFe2 O4 exhibited improved photocatalytic performance compared with commercial P-25. Moreover, alkaline media was favorable for photocatalytic degradation of cationic dye methylene blue. Finally, CoFe2 O4 /SnO2 nanoparticles can be separated and recovered quickly from suspension in the presence of an externally applied magnetic field without leaving residues in the solution. Therefore, it can be concluded that this work would replace the traditional semiconductor photocatalysts and the as-synthesized photocatalyst would be a promising candidate for environmental cleanup. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
