Graphene-supported biomimetic catalysts with synergistic effect of adsorption and degradation for efficient dye capture and removal

Abstract

Design and development of iron porphyrin-based artificial enzymes system have been attracting a lot of attention. Herein, without any toxic reductant and harsh processing, we present a facile one-pot method to fabricate bifunctional catalytic nanocomposites consisting of graphene and hemin by using vitamin C as a mild reduction reagent. The presence of graphene helps the formation of a high degree of highly active and stable hemin on the graphene surface in a monomeric form through their π−π stacking interaction. As a result, such nanocomposites possess a superior adsorption capacity and intrinsic peroxidase-like catalytic activity. Moreover, by the combination of their dye adsorption ability, RGO-hemin nanocomposites can serve as a suitable candidate for efficient capture and removal of dyes via a synergistic effect. Our findings may pave the way to apply graphene-supported artificial enzymes in a variety of fields, such as environmental chemistry, bionics, medicine, and biotechnology