Green Synthesis of Nb2O5 Nanoparticles and Photodegradation of Remazol Yellow RR Dye

Abstract

Synthesis of nanoparticles by the recently developed green approach is extremely promising because of its non-toxicity and environmentally friendly nature. In present investigation, Nb2O5 nanoparticles were prepared by environmental friendly way from niobium ethaoxide using Aloe Vera leaf pulp. The synthesis of Nb2O5 nanoparticles was confirmed by systematic characterization using XRD, EDX, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area measurements and FTIR studies. The removal efficiency of Remazol yellow RR dye over the as synthesized Nb2O5 nanoparticles as a photocatalyst was determined along with emphasizing on the parameters of initial dye concentration, catalyst loading and pH. For the photocatalytic degradation of Remazol yellow RR dye solutions pH was varied in the range of 2 to 9. For the optimization, the maximum decolorization of 95 % was observed in 120 min for low initial dye concentration of 30 mg/L for 1.5 g/L of Nb2O5 photocatalyst. Besides, the effects of oxidant species and scavengers were studied systematically.