Photochem (Oct 2023)

Photocatalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue by Magnetic Opal/Fe<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub> Colloidal Crystals under Visible Light Irradiation

  • Abraham Jorge Carmona-Carmona,
  • Enrique Sánchez Mora,
  • Jesús Ivan Peña Flores,
  • César Márquez-Beltrán,
  • María Dolores Castañeda-Antonio,
  • Marlén Alexis González-Reyna,
  • María Concepción Barrera,
  • Khashayar Misaghian,
  • Jesús Eduardo Lugo,
  • Miller Toledo-Solano

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/photochem3040024
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 3, no. 4
pp. 390 – 407

Abstract

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In this study, opal–magnetite photocatalysts based on SiO2 artificial opal crystals infiltrated with different concentrations of Fe3O4 nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized using a combination of lateral infiltration and co-assembly methods. By adjusting the concentration of Fe3O4 NPs in the SiO2 opal crystal, the energy band gap (Eg) was tuned to enable efficient degradation of methylene blue (MB) under visible light (410 nm and 575 nm). The photocatalytic process involved two stages: MB adsorption on the surface due to charge differences in the composite film and subsequent degradation through oxidative radicals on the catalyst’s surface. The developed material exhibited potential for applications in water remediation.

Keywords