Biogenic Synthesis, Characterization, and Photocatalytic Evaluation of Pristine and Graphene-Loaded Zn<sub>50</sub>Mg<sub>50</sub>O Nanocomposites for Organic Dyes Removal
Jayakaran Pachiyappan,
Gnanasundaram Nirmala,
Selvaraju Sivamani,
Rajakumar Govindasamy,
Muthu Thiruvengadam,
Marina Derkho,
Pavel Burkov,
Aleksey Popovich,
Vera Gribkova
Affiliations
Jayakaran Pachiyappan
School of Chemical Engineering, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore 632014, Tamil Nadu, India
Gnanasundaram Nirmala
School of Chemical Engineering, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore 632014, Tamil Nadu, India
Selvaraju Sivamani
Engineering Department, University of Technology and Applied Sciences, Salalah 211, Oman
Rajakumar Govindasamy
Department of Orthodontics, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences (SIMATS), Saveetha University, Chennai 600 077, Tamil Nadu, India
Muthu Thiruvengadam
Department of Applied Bioscience, College of Life and Environmental Science, Konkuk University, Seoul 05029, Korea
Marina Derkho
Institute of Veterinary Medicine, South-Urals State Agrarian University, 13 Gagarin St., Troitsk, 457100 Chelyabinsk, Russia
Pavel Burkov
Institute of Veterinary Medicine, South-Urals State Agrarian University, 13 Gagarin St., Troitsk, 457100 Chelyabinsk, Russia
Aleksey Popovich
Department of Scientific Research, K.G. Razumovsky Moscow State University of Technologies and Management (The First Cossack University), 73 Zemlyanoy Val, 109004 Moscow, Russia
Vera Gribkova
Department of Scientific Research, K.G. Razumovsky Moscow State University of Technologies and Management (The First Cossack University), 73 Zemlyanoy Val, 109004 Moscow, Russia
Algal biomass synthesised nanocomposites have a higher surface area and reusability advantages. This study aimed to synthesise and characterise ZnMgO and silica-supported graphene with ZnMgO (G-ZnMgO) nanocomposites from Kappaphycusalvarezii and evaluate their potential in the application of photocatalysis to remove Rhodamine-B (RhB) and methylene blue (MB) dyes from their aqueous medium by maximising the percentage removal using response surface methodology (RSM) modelling. Nanocomposites were synthesised and characterised by biogenic and instrumental (Powder X-ray diffraction (P-XRD), electron microscopic analysis (SEM and TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Energy dispersive analysis of X-rays (EDAX). and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-DRS)) methods, respectively; modelling predicted the optimal conditions to be photocatalyst dosage and contact time of 1 g/L and 90 min, respectively, to obtain maximum MB dye removal of 80% using G-ZnMgO. The results showed the best fit between experimental and RSM predicted values. Thus, the obtained results conclude that the algal biomass synthesised nanocomposites were found to be one of the potential photocatalysts for the removal of RhB and MB dyes from their aqueous solution.
