Enhanced sunlight-absorption of Fe2O3 covered by PANI for the photodegradation of organic pollutants and antimicrobial inactivation

Abstract

• Fabrication of core–shell S-scheme heterojunction Fe 2 O 3 -PANI nanocomposite via simple solution method. • Booted photodegradation of diverse organic pollutants under sunlight. • The enhanced antimicrobial characteristics against various bacterial strains. • The improved charge carrier’s kinetics via S-scheme with PANI. • A promising material against bacterial disinfection and an excellent stable photocatalyst. The current study focused on preparing S-scheme heterojunction Fe 2 O 3 -PANI nanocomposite and pristine Fe 2 O 3 using surfactant-assisted sol–gel and polymerization routes. The structural conformation was assessed through XRD diffractograms that confirmed the Fe 2 O 3 phase in both samples. FTIR data traces the metal–oxygen and carbon-related bonds. PL results showed that the recombination rate is retarded in nanocomposite. TEM images confirmed the covering of PANI over Fe 2 O 3 . EDX mapping showed that Fe, C, N, and O were present in the grown nanocomposite. XPS study revealed the binding energies of constituent atoms. The optical energy bandgap 2.8 and 2.7 eV for Fe 2 O 3 and Fe 2 O 3 -PANI was observed through UV–Vis analysis. The photocatalytic test against methyl blue (MB), eosin yellow (EY), and methyl red (MR) dyes were executed for 50 min under direct sunlight. The Fe 2 O 3 -PANI showed 99.8, 98.5, and 99.6% degradation efficiency against MB, EY, and MR dyes, respectively, which was higher than Fe 2 O 3 . The recyclability assessment confirmed the reusability upto four cycles. The antimicrobial property against E. coli, P-aeruginosa, K-pneumoniae, S. aureus, and P. vulgaris bacterial strains revealed a higher response for Fe 2 O 3 -PANI with the zone of inhibition 30, 31, 31, 30, and 30 nm, respectively. The enhanced performance of Fe 2 O 3 -PANI is being credited to S-scheme heterostructure supported with PANI, which can hinder the recombination process and support electron/hole separation. The results indicated that the as-grown nanocomposite could be a promising candidate against bacterial disinfection and an excellent stable photocatalyst.