Synthesis and characterization of copper bismuth oxide/rGO nanocomposite by sonochemical method and investigation of its photocatalytic performance in dibenzothiophene desulfurization

Abstract

In order to improve the efficiency of desulfurization of petroleum derivatives, copper bismuth oxide/reduced graphene oxide (Bi7.38Cu0.62O11.69/rGO) nanocomposite was synthesized by sonochemical method. The synthesized nanocomposite was identified by FESEM, FT-IR, XRD, DRS, and EDS analyses. Based on XRD analysis, pure copper bismuth oxide is formed using hydrazine, while using sodium hydroxide does not lead to the desired product. FESEM images showed that the size of Bi7.38Cu0.62O11.69 particles decreases in the presence of rGO. The desulfurization results showed that the presence of rGO causes a significant increase in efficiency due to increased light absorption and reduced recombination rate, so that Bi7.38Cu0.62O11.69/rGOnanocomposite has an efficiency of 87%, while pure Bi7.38Cu0.62O11.69 has an efficiency of 68%. Also, it was found that the purity of the copper bismuth oxide has a great effect on the photocatalytic efficiency, so that by calcining the product and removing the impurities, the efficiency increases from 55% to 68%.