Synthesis of Bi4Ti3O12-BaTiO3 nanocomposite, manifesting high dielectric and unique magnetic nature applicable in heterogeneous photocatalytic activity for degradation of Rhodamine B dye

Abstract

ABSTRACT Bi4Ti3O12-BaTiO3 (BTO-BT) nanocomposite, a Aurivillius oxide, which is synthesised by modified solid-state route, and characterised by various techniques like FTIR, XRD, TEM, UV-DRS, Zetasizer Nano-ZS, AFM, BET, SEM-EDX and XPS for the phase identification, microstructural analysis, bandgap determination, elemental analysis and oxidation state of the material. Formation of BTO-BT nanocomposite (orthorhombic and cubic) confirmed by Le-Bail fitting analysis with the help of XRD data. The electrical measurement of the material showed the existence of semiconducting grains and insulating grain boundaries responsible for Maxwell relaxation and a high dielectric constant of value 4.75 × 103 at 368 K was observed. The Magnetic behaviour studied by SQUID indicates it to be magnetically frustrated materials. The material was found to be applicable in photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B under UV light through major reactive species, i.e. OH . radicals and O2 .- generated during the photocatalytic reaction proved to be following the first-order kinetics.