Impact of Additives and ZnO Nanoparticles on the Sonodegradation of Methylene Blue

Sonohemical method for the degradation of toxic dyestuffs is now considered as a promising technique. An important dye namely Methylene Blue (MB) was degraded using ultrasound irradiation at different pH. The impact of various additives like CCl4, H2O2, NaCl and Na2SO4 with different doses for MB degradation was observed. The degradation efficiency of ZnO nanoparticles was also measured. The sonolysis was conducted for 0, 5, 15, 25 minutes and the extent of degradation was measured by UV–vis spectrophotometer. Acidic media was more efficient for degradation compared to basic media. 200 µM/L doses H2O2 of 20 mM concentration showed highest efficiency (41.98%) to degrade the MB molecules. On the other hand CCl4, Na2SO4 and ZnO nanoparticles also showed maximum 35.63%, 34.88% and 41.72% degradation efficiency respectively. The efficiency increases in the presence of additives and ZnO nanoparticles in comparison to the efficiency (18.88%) obtained without these additives.