Carbon quantum dots supported AgI /ZnO/phosphorus doped graphitic carbon nitride as Z-scheme photocatalyst for efficient photodegradation of 2, 4-dinitrophenol

By V. Hasija, Anita Sudhaik, P. Raizada, Ahmad Hosseini-Bandegharaei, Pardeep Singh. Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering, 2019

214 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Abstract The unique attributes of CQDs, such as low cost, facile synthesis, tremendous photochemical, and physicochemical stability, render them as versatile nanocomposites, as compared to conventional semiconductors. Herein, a green synthesis approach was opted using naturally occurring bamboo leaves as precursors for CQDs production via a facile and efficient hydrothermal method. The fabricated CQDs were exploited for construction of Z-scheme P-doped g-C 3 N 4 /AgI/ZnO/CQDs (PGCN) heterojunction by immobilizing AgI/ZnO/CQD on graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ), that acts as support targeted for 2, 4-dinitrophenol (DNP) eradication from simulated wastewater. TEM image depicts the presence of different fringes on an agglomerated structure which confirms the formation of nanocrystalline heterostructure. XRD, XPS, FT-IR, and EDX were used to provide structural, morphological information of synthesized samples relating the existence of heterostructure between AgI and ZnO/CQDs with the sheet-like structured g-C 3 N 4 which have undergone successful inclusion of P dopant into g-C 3 N 4 framework. Congruously, the optical properties of modified photocatalyst with suppression in photogenerated electron-hole pair recombination g-C 3 N 4 /AgI/ZnO/CQD nanostructure were evidenced by photoluminescence (PL) spectra and UV–Vis diffused reflection spectra (UV–Vis DRS). Synergistic process of adsorption and photocatalysis was effectual for complete mineralization of DNP into CO 2 , H 2 O, and inorganic ions. The integration of g-C 3 N 4 to AgI/ZnO with CQDs accelerated photocatalytic activity attributed to electron sink behavior of CQDs. The fabricated Z-scheme P-doped g-C 3 N 4 /AgI/ZnO/CQDs photocatalyst exhibited remarkable stability and recyclability for ten consecutive catalytic cycles.

Subfields: Materials Chemistry, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

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