Abstract
Fe2−xCuxZr2−xWxO7 (x: 0, 0.05, 0.015) nanoparticles were synthesized following the Pechini method and characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) measurements to be used as photocatalysts in colored water remediation. All of the prepared materials were crystallized in a cubic fluorite phase as the major phase. The band gap was reduced upon doping with W6+ and Cu2+ from 1.96 eV to 1.47 eV for Fe1.85Cu0.15Zr1.85W0.15O7. Carbol fuchsin (CF) dye was used to determine the photocatalytic degradation efficiency of the prepared catalysts. Degradation efficiency was directly proportional to the dopant’s concentration. Complete removal of 20 mg/L CF was achieved under optimal conditions (pH 9, and catalyst loading of 1.5 g/L) using Fe1.85Cu0.15Zr1.85W0.15O7. The degradation rate followed pseudo-first-order kinetics. The reusability for photocatalysts was tested five times, decreasing its efficiency by 4% after the fifth cycle, which indicates that the prepared Fe1.85Cu0.15Zr1.85W0.15O7 photocatalyst is a promising novel photocatalyst due to its superior efficiency in dye photodegradation.
Highlights
Many studies are concerned with metal oxide photocatalysts for dye photodegradation
Few studies are concerned with defect-fluorite A2 B2 O7 metal oxides as photocatalysts, such as the Ga2 Zr2−x Wx O7 system used for crystal violet degradation [33]
To examine the significance of the active species involved in Carbol fuchsin (CF) photodegradation, the experiments were conducted using 50 mmol isopropanol (IPA), EDTA, and benzoquinone (BQ) scavenger, which were introduced to the reaction mixture separately in order to explore the role of the HO· radicals, photogenerated holes, (h+ ) and O2− radicals, respectively
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Many studies are concerned with metal oxide photocatalysts (with the chemical formula A2 B2 O7 crystallized in a pyrochlore structure) for dye photodegradation. Few studies are concerned with defect-fluorite A2 B2 O7 metal oxides as photocatalysts, such as the Ga2 Zr2−x Wx O7 system used for crystal violet degradation [33]. More light should be shed on A2 B2 O7 metal oxides with a defect fluorite structure, because of their impressive performance in the photocatalytic degradation of dyes. The effects of time, catalyst dose, pH, and initial dye concentration on the photocatalytic activity of the prepared system for the degradation of carbol fuchsin dye as a water contaminant model under visible-light irradiation were studied
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