A comparison of synthesis processes and the performance of photocatalysts for the degradation of rhodamine B dye

ABSTRACT

Titanium (TiO₂), zinc (ZnO), and iron (Fe₃O₄) oxides nanoparticles can be used photo oxidation, of organic pollutants, as well as in many other ways. However, among the challenges for technological application (scale-up) of scientific developments that include nanotechnology, two aspects are still rarely explored: research on environmentally compatible preparation methods of the nanomaterials as well as the study of the variability of the properties of the nanomaterials. Different methods for the synthesis of TiO₂, ZnO and Fe₃O₄ particles were used to obtain sols with these semiconductor nano- and microparticles. The TiO₂, ZnO and Fe₃O₄ particles obtained were tested as photocatalysts, and they increased the photodegradation rate of the organic dye rhodamine B up to 20.5 times. The synthetic routes for obtaining ZnO and TiO₂ particles that best met the Green Chemistry principles were selected. However, for commercial application of these particles, it is still necessary to reduce the variation in their photocatalytic performance.

Keywords:
heterogeneous photocatalysis; kinetics; green chemistry