Hollow CuFe2O4/MgFe2O4 Heterojunction Boost Photocatalytic Oxidation Activity for Organic Pollutants

Zhicheng Zhang; Wei Cai; Shaopeng Rong; Hongxia Qu; Huifang Xie

doi:10.3390/catal12080910

Catalysts (Aug 2022)

Hollow CuFe2O4/MgFe2O4 Heterojunction Boost Photocatalytic Oxidation Activity for Organic Pollutants

Zhicheng Zhang,
Wei Cai,
Shaopeng Rong,
Hongxia Qu,
Huifang Xie

Affiliations

Zhicheng Zhang: Department of Chemical Engineering and Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
Wei Cai: Department of Chemical Engineering and Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
Shaopeng Rong: Department of Environmental Science and Technology, School of Environmental and Biological Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
Hongxia Qu: Department of Chemical Engineering and Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
Huifang Xie: Department of Environmental Science and Technology, School of Environmental and Biological Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/catal12080910
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 12, no. 8
p. 910

Abstract

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P-n heterojunction-structured CuFe2O4/MgFe2O4 hollow spheres with a diameter of 250 nm were synthesized using a template-free solvothermal method, and time-dependent morphological studies were carried out to investigate the hollow formation mechanism. The CuFe2O4/MgFe2O4 with a molar ratio of 1:2 (Cu:Mg) had the highest degradation efficiency with the model organic dye Acid Orange 7, with a degradation rate of 91.96% over 60 min. The synthesized CuFe2O4/MgFe2O4 nanocomposites were characterized by XRD, TEM, HRTEM, UV-vis spectroscopy, Mott–Schottky, and EIS. Due to the synthesis of the p-n heterojunction, CuFe2O4/MgFe2O4 has efficient photogenerated carriers, and the hollow structure has a higher specific surface area and stronger adsorption capacity, which is significantly better than that of CuFe2O4 and MgFe2O4 in terms of photocatalytic performance. The outstanding performance shows that the p-n heterostructure of CuFe2O4/MgFe2O4 has potential for application in wastewater degradation.

Published in Catalysts

ISSN: 2073-4344 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Technology: Chemical technology; Science: Chemistry
Website: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/catalysts

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