TY - JOUR
T1 - Magnesium incorporation-mediated formation of oxygen vacancies in zinc ferrite for PMS activation toward effective photocatalytic 4-nitrophenol degradation
AU - Alhammadi, Salh
AU - Kang, Sohee
AU - Ryu, Da Gyeong
AU - Mady, Amr H.
AU - Azhar, Muhammad Hanif Ainun
AU - Mostafa, Mohamed Fouly
AU - Lee, Seungmin
AU - Seo, Minseo
AU - Saad, Alaa Magdy
AU - Kang, Dohyung
AU - Kim, Woo Kyoung
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2024/12/21
Y1 - 2024/12/21
N2 - Developing highly effective heterogeneous photocatalysts for activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS) in the photodegradation of chemical effluents remains challenging. In this study, ZnFe2O4 (ZFO) nanoparticles (NPs) incorporated with different magnesium ratios were prepared using a cost-effective microwave process. The resulting Mgx:ZFO catalysts were characterized by several analysis techniques, and the effect of Mg incorporation on the photocatalytic 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) degradation was studied. The results revealed that incorporating Mg into the ZFO structure substantially improved the photocatalytic removal efficiency of 4-NP from 62 % to 89 %. Compared with pure ZFO, Mg:ZFO contained more surface oxygen vacancies (SOVs), which can facilitate the generation and transfer of photocarriers, promote PMS activation, and improve photocatalytic performance. The ZFO catalysts exhibited larger surface areas after Mg incorporation, which provided more active sites for 4-NP removal. Finally, the bandgap energy of ZFO was widened from ∼ 1.67 eV to ∼ 1.80 eV after Mg incorporation, which could reduce photocarrier recombination and result in higher photocatalytic removal efficiency.
AB - Developing highly effective heterogeneous photocatalysts for activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS) in the photodegradation of chemical effluents remains challenging. In this study, ZnFe2O4 (ZFO) nanoparticles (NPs) incorporated with different magnesium ratios were prepared using a cost-effective microwave process. The resulting Mgx:ZFO catalysts were characterized by several analysis techniques, and the effect of Mg incorporation on the photocatalytic 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) degradation was studied. The results revealed that incorporating Mg into the ZFO structure substantially improved the photocatalytic removal efficiency of 4-NP from 62 % to 89 %. Compared with pure ZFO, Mg:ZFO contained more surface oxygen vacancies (SOVs), which can facilitate the generation and transfer of photocarriers, promote PMS activation, and improve photocatalytic performance. The ZFO catalysts exhibited larger surface areas after Mg incorporation, which provided more active sites for 4-NP removal. Finally, the bandgap energy of ZFO was widened from ∼ 1.67 eV to ∼ 1.80 eV after Mg incorporation, which could reduce photocarrier recombination and result in higher photocatalytic removal efficiency.
KW - Magnesium-substituted zinc ferrite
KW - Organic pollutant remediation
KW - Oxygen vacancy
KW - Wastewater treatment
KW - ZnFeO
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85202293818&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.apsusc.2024.161064
DO - 10.1016/j.apsusc.2024.161064
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85202293818
SN - 0169-4332
VL - 677
JO - Applied Surface Science
JF - Applied Surface Science
M1 - 161064
ER -