Magnetic recoverable MnFe2O4/cellulose nanocrystal composites as an efficient catalyst for decomposition of methylene blue

Abstract

MnFe2O4/cellulose nanocrystal (MnFe2O4/CNC) composites featured high catalytic activities on the decomposition of methylene blue (MB) were prepared by a novel approach, through which the H+ ions produced during the acid hydrolysis of cellulose are largely consumed. Attributed to their high specific surface areas, small particle size and low band gap, contributing to the generation of large number of reactive hydroxyl radicals from H2O2, the magnetic MnFe2O4 nanoparticles anchoring on CNC demonstrate pronounced improvements of catalytic activities on the decomposition of MB pollutants compared with that of the bare MnFe2O4. Specifically, the degradation degree of MB catalyzed by MnFe2O4/CNC composite containing 20 wt% of CNC is 99%, which suggests more than 60% increase than that in the bare MnFe2O4. More particularly, MnFe2O4/CNC composites featuring excellent magnetic properties exhibit an excellent recycling catalytic performance, suggesting a great promising candidate in application of environmental pollutant treatment.