A visible light-induced fe3o4/zno-cu nanocomposite and its photocatalytic activities for rhodamine b photodegradation

Synthesis of Fe3O4/ZnO-Cu nanocomposite photocatalyst has been conducted. The synthesis was carried out using the co-precipitation method with the variation of Cu concentration and modification by Fe3O4 magnetic material. As synthesized photocatalysts were characterized using FTIR, XRD, TEM, and SR UV-Visible. Photocatalytic activities of samples were evaluated through Rhodamine B degradation under visible light irradiation. The results showed that a sample with Fe3O4/ZnO-Cu 1 has smaller band gap energy of 2.90 eV and the highest photocatalytic activity than pure ZnO or Fe3O4-modified ZnO (Fe3O4/ZnO-Cu 0) under visible light. The percentage of Rhodamine B degradation was approximately 89.41 during 120 min of visible light illumination. Moreover, the photocatalyst materials could be easily separated after photocatalysis which is due to the magnetic property of Fe3O4 material. Therefore, Cu-doped ZnO with Fe3O4 modification has been an efficient and effective visible-light-induced photocatalyst in removing non-biodegradable Rhodamine B dyes. © 2021 Trans Tech Publications Ltd, Switzerland.