Synthesis of ZnO nanorods/Fe3O4/polypyrrole nanocomposites for photocatalytic activity under the visible light irradiation

Abstract

ZnO nanorods (NRs)/Fe3O4/polypyrrole (PPy) nanocomposites (defined as ZFP nanocomposites) were synthesized successfully via depositional technique for obtaining an improvement in the photocatalyst activity of ZnO nanorods for the first time. Fe3O4 nanoparticles were synthesized in the presence of ZnO NRs and then the PPy was polymerized in presence of ZnO NRs/Fe3O4 nanocomposites. The morphology, structure, and photocatalytic activity of the synthesized ZFP nanocomposites were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectra (FTIR), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and UV–visible spectroscopy. ZFP nanocomposites were used for the degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye. The high photocatalytic efficiency (90%) has been obtained through using ZFP nanocomposite with 40% of pyrrole under visible light irradiation.