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ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation

Suneel Kumar, Ankita Dhiman, Pitchaimuthu Sudhagar, Venkata Krishnan, Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu Orcid Logo

Applied Surface Science, Volume: 447, Pages: 802 - 815

Swansea University Author: Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1016/j.apsusc.2018.04.045

Abstract

In this work, we report the formation of heterojunctions comprising of graphene quantum dots (GQD) decorated ZnO nanorods (NR) and its use as efficient photocatalysts for environmental remediation. The heterojunctions has been designed to be active both in the UV and visible light regions and antici...

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Published in: Applied Surface Science
ISSN: 01694332
Published: 2018
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa39339
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spelling 2018-05-22T12:05:47.4713164 v2 39339 2018-04-09 ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation 2fdbee02f4bfc5a1b174c8bd04afbd2b 0000-0001-9098-8806 Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu true false 2018-04-09 EEN In this work, we report the formation of heterojunctions comprising of graphene quantum dots (GQD) decorated ZnO nanorods (NR) and its use as efficient photocatalysts for environmental remediation. The heterojunctions has been designed to be active both in the UV and visible light regions and anticipated utilize the maximum part of the solar light spectrum. In this view, we examined the photocatalytic performance of our heterojunctions towards the degradation of colored pollutant (methylene blue (MB) dye) and a colorless pollutant (carbendazim (CZ) fungicide) under sunlight irradiation. Compared to bare photocatalyst ZnO and GQD, the heterojunction with 2 wt% of GQD (ZGQD2) showed the best photocatalytic activity by effectively degrading (about 95%) of organic pollutants (MB and CZ) from water within a short span of 70 min. The superior photocatalytic activity of these ZnO-GQD heterojunctions could be attributed to efficient charge carrier separation lead suppressed recombination rate at photocatalyst interfaces. In addition to the enhanced light absorption from UV to visible region, the high specific surface area of ZGQD2 heterojunction (353.447 m2 g-1) also imparts strong adsorption capacity for pollutants over catalyst surface, resulting in high photoactivity. Based on the obtained results, band gap alignment at ZnO-GQD heterojunction and active species trapping experiments, a plausible mechanism is proposed for photocatalytic reaction. The excellent photostability and recyclability of the ZnO-GQD heterojunctions fostering as promising photocatalyst candidate for environmental remediation applications. Journal Article Applied Surface Science 447 802 815 01694332 ZnO; graphene quantum dots; heterojunctions; charge transfer; photocatalysis; environmental remediation 31 12 2018 2018-12-31 10.1016/j.apsusc.2018.04.045 COLLEGE NANME Engineering COLLEGE CODE EEN Swansea University 2018-05-22T12:05:47.4713164 2018-04-09T10:16:49.2154237 Faculty of Science and Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Uncategorised Suneel Kumar 1 Ankita Dhiman 2 Pitchaimuthu Sudhagar 3 Venkata Krishnan 4 Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu 0000-0001-9098-8806 5 0039339-09042018101858.pdf kumar2018.pdf 2018-04-09T10:18:58.6200000 Output 3482950 application/pdf Accepted Manuscript true 2019-04-07T00:00:00.0000000 true eng
title ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation
spellingShingle ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation
Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu
title_short ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation
title_full ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation
title_fullStr ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation
title_full_unstemmed ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation
title_sort ZnO-graphene quantum dots heterojunctions for natural sunlight-driven photocatalytic environmental remediation
author_id_str_mv 2fdbee02f4bfc5a1b174c8bd04afbd2b
author_id_fullname_str_mv 2fdbee02f4bfc5a1b174c8bd04afbd2b_***_Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu
author Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu
author2 Suneel Kumar
Ankita Dhiman
Pitchaimuthu Sudhagar
Venkata Krishnan
Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu
format Journal article
container_title Applied Surface Science
container_volume 447
container_start_page 802
publishDate 2018
institution Swansea University
issn 01694332
doi_str_mv 10.1016/j.apsusc.2018.04.045
college_str Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchytype
hierarchy_top_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
department_str School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Uncategorised{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Science and Engineering{{{_:::_}}}School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Uncategorised
document_store_str 1
active_str 0
description In this work, we report the formation of heterojunctions comprising of graphene quantum dots (GQD) decorated ZnO nanorods (NR) and its use as efficient photocatalysts for environmental remediation. The heterojunctions has been designed to be active both in the UV and visible light regions and anticipated utilize the maximum part of the solar light spectrum. In this view, we examined the photocatalytic performance of our heterojunctions towards the degradation of colored pollutant (methylene blue (MB) dye) and a colorless pollutant (carbendazim (CZ) fungicide) under sunlight irradiation. Compared to bare photocatalyst ZnO and GQD, the heterojunction with 2 wt% of GQD (ZGQD2) showed the best photocatalytic activity by effectively degrading (about 95%) of organic pollutants (MB and CZ) from water within a short span of 70 min. The superior photocatalytic activity of these ZnO-GQD heterojunctions could be attributed to efficient charge carrier separation lead suppressed recombination rate at photocatalyst interfaces. In addition to the enhanced light absorption from UV to visible region, the high specific surface area of ZGQD2 heterojunction (353.447 m2 g-1) also imparts strong adsorption capacity for pollutants over catalyst surface, resulting in high photoactivity. Based on the obtained results, band gap alignment at ZnO-GQD heterojunction and active species trapping experiments, a plausible mechanism is proposed for photocatalytic reaction. The excellent photostability and recyclability of the ZnO-GQD heterojunctions fostering as promising photocatalyst candidate for environmental remediation applications.
published_date 2018-12-31T03:49:57Z
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