TY - JOUR

T1 - Decoration of g-C3N4 nanosheets by mesoporous CoFe2O4 nanoparticles for promoting visible-light photocatalytic Hg(II) reduction

AU - Kadi, Mohammad W.

AU - Mohamed, Reda M.

AU - Ismail, Adel A.

AU - Bahnemann, D.W.

N1 - Funding Information: This project was funded by the Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR) at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, under grant no. RG-35-130-38. The authors, therefore, acknowledge with thanks DSR for technical and financial support.

PY - 2020/10/20

Y1 - 2020/10/20

N2 - In this contribution, synthesis of mesoporous CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 heterostructures employing soft and hard templates approaches was explored to produce large surface area (151 m 2 g −1) and tight bandgap (2.05 eV) photocatalysts for Hg(II) photoreduction under visible light illumination. TEM image exhibited that CoFe 2O 4 NPs are well distributed over g-C 3N 4 nanosheet with a spherical like structure ∼ 5−10 nm. The magnetization values for CoFe 2O 4 NPs and 4%CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 heterostructure were calculated ∼ 6.21 and 11.07 emu g –1, which are very high values compared to the published papers. Mesoporous CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 exhibited a greater photocatalytic efficiency than pure either CoFe 2O 4 NPs or g-C 3N 4. Hg(II) photoreduction efficiency boosted from 16.2 % to 100 % as the CoFe 2O 4 NPs contents increased from 0 to 4% in the mesoporous CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 heterostructures within 60 min. The Hg(II) photoreduction rate goes more quickly over mesoporous 4%CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 (539.91 μmolg −1 h −1) as compared to pure either g-C 3N 4 (79.86 μmolg −1 h −1) and CoFe 2O 4 NPs (117.25 μmolg −1 h −1). The key factor for promoting Hg(II) photoreduction is the highly dispersed CoFe 2O 4 NPs onto the surface of g-C 3N 4 and their large surface area, narrow bandgap, small particles size, harvest light and high diffusion of Hg(II) into the pores. Mesoporous CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 are magnetically removable easily possessing a high recyclability and durability in the Hg(II) photoreduction in aqueous solutions.

AB - In this contribution, synthesis of mesoporous CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 heterostructures employing soft and hard templates approaches was explored to produce large surface area (151 m 2 g −1) and tight bandgap (2.05 eV) photocatalysts for Hg(II) photoreduction under visible light illumination. TEM image exhibited that CoFe 2O 4 NPs are well distributed over g-C 3N 4 nanosheet with a spherical like structure ∼ 5−10 nm. The magnetization values for CoFe 2O 4 NPs and 4%CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 heterostructure were calculated ∼ 6.21 and 11.07 emu g –1, which are very high values compared to the published papers. Mesoporous CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 exhibited a greater photocatalytic efficiency than pure either CoFe 2O 4 NPs or g-C 3N 4. Hg(II) photoreduction efficiency boosted from 16.2 % to 100 % as the CoFe 2O 4 NPs contents increased from 0 to 4% in the mesoporous CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 heterostructures within 60 min. The Hg(II) photoreduction rate goes more quickly over mesoporous 4%CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 (539.91 μmolg −1 h −1) as compared to pure either g-C 3N 4 (79.86 μmolg −1 h −1) and CoFe 2O 4 NPs (117.25 μmolg −1 h −1). The key factor for promoting Hg(II) photoreduction is the highly dispersed CoFe 2O 4 NPs onto the surface of g-C 3N 4 and their large surface area, narrow bandgap, small particles size, harvest light and high diffusion of Hg(II) into the pores. Mesoporous CoFe 2O 4/g-C 3N 4 are magnetically removable easily possessing a high recyclability and durability in the Hg(II) photoreduction in aqueous solutions.

KW - CoFe O /g-C N

KW - Heterostructure

KW - Hg(II) photoreduction

KW - Mesoporous

KW - Visible light

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85087106404&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.colsurfa.2020.125206

DO - 10.1016/j.colsurfa.2020.125206

M3 - Article

VL - 603

JO - Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects

JF - Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects

SN - 0927-7757

M1 - 125206

ER -