Abstract

Background: Textile industries discharge harmful synthetic dyes to nearby water sources. These colour effluents should be treated before discharge to reduce the toxicity caused by synthetic colours.

Objective: To synthesize visible light active superstructures to reduce water pollution caused by textile industries.

Methods: We have successfully synthesized ZnO/Dy/NiO hybrid nanocomposites using waste curd as fuel by a simple combustion method. The obtained material was able to reduce recombination and enhanced the photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants. The as-synthesized material was characterized by XRD, absorption spectroscopy, FESEM, EDAX, etc. The obtained hybrid nanostructure was used as a photocatalyst for the degradation of methylene blue under sunlight, UV light as well as in dark. Comparative experiments were carried out with a variation of catalytic load, pH, dye concentrations, etc. for a better understanding of the performance of the catalyst at various conditions.

Results and Conclusion: The ternary compound shows wide range of absorption by expanding absorption band both in UV and visible regions. ZnO/Dy/NiO hybrid nanocomposites performed well and showed uniqueness in the activity uder visible light.

Keywords: Ternary heterostructures, ZnO/Dy/NiO, photocatalysis, methylene blue, dye degradation.