Sonochemically prepared rGO/Ag3PO4/CeO2 nanocomposite photocatalyst for effective visible light photocatalytic degradation of methylene dye and its prediction with ANN modeling

Abstract

This work deals with the preparation of very effective rGO/Ag3PO4/CeO2 nanocomposite photocatalyst with an ultrasound assisted decoration of Ag3PO4 nanoparticles on CeO2 nanoparticles which was then loaded on reduced graphene oxide (rGO). Successful sonochemical fabrication of rGO/Ag3PO4/CeO2 nanocomposite was established by XRD, FTIR, TEM, EDS and elemental mapping, and XPS analysis. The photocatalytic performance of the prepared rGO/Ag3PO4/CeO2 nanocomposite was studied by experimental investigation on the visible light-induced photocatalytic degradation of MB dye. Further, effect of rGO/Ag3PO4/CeO2 nanocomposite photocatalyst loading, initial dye concentration, reaction medium temperature and dye solution pH on MB dye degradation was also evaluated. Superior photocatalytic activity of sonochemically fabricated rGO/Ag3PO4/CeO2 nanocomposite photocatalyst under visible light irradiation was found which showed complete degradation of MB dye. This superior photocatalysis is attributed to quick transfer and effective separation of the electron-hole pair in case rGO/Ag3PO4/CeO2 of nanocomposite photocatalyst. Further, an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model was established for the prediction of degradation of MB dye for various experimental conditions.