Photo‐Corrosion Resistant, Immobilized ZnO Tetrapod/PVB Sheet: Harnessing Visible LED Light for Defect Mediated Photodegradation of Mixed Cationic‐Anionic Organic Dyes

ABSTRACT Zinc Oxide (ZnO) tetrapods with its unique shape, high crystallinity, excellent optoelectronic characteristics, and significantly lower intrinsic density defects than other morphologies. This paper communicates the rapid and facile preparation of ZnO tetrapods by a modified catalyst‐free thermal sublimation process, viable for photocatalytic activity. The ZnO tetrapods are tested as a photocatalyst to degrade methylene blue, rhodamine B, and methyl orange dyes individually and also as a mixture under a 200 W white LED light irradiation with low energy consumption, affordable cost and suitability to be rapidly and almost completely recycled. The ZnO tetrapods are tested for continuous photodegradation by cyclic study in their powder form and are then immobilized into ZnO‐T/PVB sheet and used for 10 cycles, demonstrating their promising stability under white LED light. Photo‐corrosion study for ZnO tetrapods are demonstrated under white LED light for 2, 4 and 8 days, indicating distortion of tetrapodal morphology into platelet‐like particles exposing active sites and increasing the surface area with increased efficiency. The ZnO tetrapods is found to effectively degrade the dyes by the defect‐mediated mechanism, proving it as a cost‐effective visible light photocatalyst for extending its use for continual degradation as a supplement to natural Sunlight.