Fabrication of g-C3N4/Cu-MOF/Nd2O3@NiO Nanocomposite for Dual Photocatalytic Applications: Methylene Blue Degradation and Hydrogen Peroxide Production

In the present report, a novel photocatalyst g-C3N4/Cu-MOF/Nd2O3@NiO was prepared using g-C3N4, Cu-MOF, and Nd2O3@NiO as the individual components using an ultrasonic-assisted wet-impregnation method. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis of the nanocomposite and its individual components were performed for vibrational, morphological, structural, and elemental characterization, respectively. The appearance of vibrational bands at 813 cm-1 for g-C3N4, 665 cm-1 for the Nd-O, 511 cm-1 for NiO, and 599 cm-1 for Cu-O indicates preparation of g-C3N4/Cu-BDC/Nd2O3@NiO nanocomposite. An irregular flake-like morphology of the nanocomposite was observed in SEM images. The appearance of sharp peaks in X-ray diffraction analysis indicated the crystalline nature of the nanocomposite and its individual components. EDX analysis indicated the presence of all elements that made up the composition of the nanocomposite and its individual components. A comprehensive photocatalytic study using nanocomposite and its individual components as photocatalysts was conducted on the degradation of Methylene blue (MB) as a target pollutant. The results indicated that the nanocomposite degraded the target pollutant more efficiently than its individual components at various parameters such as pH, time, concentration of catalyst, and pollutant. The nanocomposite showed maximum degradation of 91% at pH 11, a catalyst dose of 10 mg, and 140 minutes of irradiation time in sunlight. The nanocomposite and its individual components were also tested for the production of Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2), and a higher production rate of 0.19 mg/L was obtained by the nanocomposite.