Leveraging the Photocatalytic Degradation Efficiency of Solution Combustion Derived ZnO Photocatalyst through Palladium Doping

Abstract

In this work, palladium-doped zinc oxide nanoparticle photocatalysts with various amounts of palladium are prepared through a solution combustion method. Their crystal structure, optical, morphological, and thermal properties are examined by X-ray diffractometry (XRD), UV-vis Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy (DRS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and thermogravimetric analysis, respectively. The XRD results demonstrate that palladium doping does not induce any secondary phases related to metallic palladium or palladium oxides. The inclusion of palladium with ZnO decreases the bandgap value and the lowest bandgap value of 3.19 eV is evaluated for the 3% palladium-doped ZnO photocatalyst. The Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) spectroscopic analysis reveals the characteristic stretching vibrations of ZnO at 460 cm −1 in all the synthesized photocatalysts. Palladium doping induces thermal stability enhancement in the synthesized photocatalysts. The optimal palladium doping enhances the photocatalytic degradation efficiency significantly against methylene blue (MB) dye. A plausible mechanism is also discussed for photocatalytic degradation enhancement due to palladium doping.

Heterojunction PdO/CoS as a High-Performance Visible-Light Active Photocatalyst Elimination of Methylene Blue from Aqueous Media

“…Previous studies on the synthesis of cobalt sulfide and various composites have demonstrated their effectiveness as photocatalysts for the degradation of dyes like methylene blue [30][31][32][33][34][35]. Due to their optimal combination and high reactivity, palladium is widely used as an intermediate metal in homogeneous and heterogeneous catalytic reactions, being one of the most consumed metals [36][37][38][39]. Generally, heterogeneous catalytic processes are preferred over homogeneous processes due to higher efficiency and easier reuse of catalyst materials.…”

Synthesis of ZnO Crystal with Micro‐Nano Structures by a Continuous Co‐Precipitation Method: Morphological Evolution and Mechanism Analysis

“…Synthesis of crystals with specific morphology and size has become a hot topic since the properties of a composite material rely heavily on its micro-nano structures. [1][2][3] Zinc oxide (ZnO) stands out among these materials due to its variable morphologies and remarkable optical properties, finding applications in catalysts, [4] photoelectric devices, [5] solar cells, [6] cosmetic industry, [7] antimicrobial agents, [8] rubber, [9] and so forth. Up to date, ZnO with various morphologies, such as wires, [10] snowflakes, [11] cylinders, [12] tubes, [13] stars, [14] dendrite sheets, [15] plates, [16] dumbbells, [17] disks, [18] and so on, have been successfully prepared as a functional filling employed in many occasions.…”