Synthesis and characterization of [formula omitted] composite as photocatalyst for the degradation of organic dyes

Abstract

Increasing anthropogenic and industrial activities lead to the contamination of aquatic resources with organic pollutants such as dyes. In this work, a magnetic composite photocatalyst composed of Fe3O4, BiOCl, and Cu2O was fabricated for the degradation of organic dye pollutants. The composite was synthesized via a simple co-precipitation method. FT-IR and SEM-EDX analyses confirmed the formation of Fe3O4/BiOCI/Cu2O (FBC) composite. Photocatalytic degradation was tested under UV, and visible light using model organic dyes, methyl orange (MO), and methylene blue (MB), and was monitored using UV–Vis spectroscopy. The absorbance was found to decrease corresponding to the reduction of dye concentration during photocatalytic degradation. A plot of absorbance versus irradiation time for both model dyes exhibited exponential decay; faster degradation was observed with MO than with MB. Furthermore, the degradation of both dyes using the FBC photocatalyst was more efficient under UV light.