Skip to main content
Disciplines
Automotive Business IT + Informatics Construction + Real Estate Electrical Engineering + Electronics Energy + Sustainability Insurance + Risk Finance + Banking Management + Leadership Marketing + Sales Mechanical Engineering + Materials
Events
DE
EN
Books
Journals
Topic Page
Marketing
Start single access now
Access for companies
EXTENDED SEARCH
Log in
Top
Journal of Materials Science
Published in: Journal of Materials Science 20/2019

22-07-2019 | Chemical routes to materials

Synthesis of foamed zinc oxide–silica spheres coupled with g-C3N4 nanosheets for visible light photocatalysis

Authors: Xiaorong Zhang, Muhammad Shakeel, Baoshan Li, Jinxi Zhang, Lei Wang

Published in: Journal of Materials Science | Issue 20/2019

Log in

Activate our intelligent search to find suitable subject content or patents.

search-config
loading …

Abstract

Proficient visible light-driven photocatalyst for waste water remediation has gained immense attention in decades. Herein, novel foamed zinc oxide–silica spheres and carbon nitride nanocomposite (FZSS@CN) were fabricated by hydrothermal and calcination treatments. The resulting nanocomposite was passed through complete characterization profiling for structural, optical and kinetics properties. The photocatalytic performance was investigated by the degradation of textile dyes such as methylene blue (MB) and Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light. The optimized nanocomposite (FZSS@CN-10) exhibited the superior photocatalytic degradation performance up to 95% for MB and 90% for RhB with rate constant (k) = 0.0516 min−1 and 0.0464 min−1, respectively. This excellent performance was attributed to the hierarchical morphology, high surface area and mesoporous channels with open cavities. This uniqueness is responsible to enhance the optical and kinetic capabilities of the material for effective photocatalysis. More interestingly, the crystalline structure of the recycled sample has more sharp peaks than fresh sample. This phenomenal behavior leads to a new method for the fabrication of effective materials in this field.
previous article Hybrid approach for augmenting the impact resistance of p-aramid fabrics: grafting of ZnO nanorods and impregnation of shear thickening fluid
next article Effect of coatings on thermal conductivity and tribological properties of aluminum foam/polyoxymethylene interpenetrating composites

Dont have a licence yet? Then find out more about our products and how to get one now:

Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 102.000 Bücher
  • über 537 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Automobil + Motoren
  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Elektrotechnik + Elektronik
  • Energie + Nachhaltigkeit
  • Finance + Banking
  • Management + Führung
  • Marketing + Vertrieb
  • Maschinenbau + Werkstoffe
  • Versicherung + Risiko

Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

inform now

Springer Professional "Technik"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Technik" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 67.000 Bücher
  • über 390 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Automobil + Motoren
  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Elektrotechnik + Elektronik
  • Energie + Nachhaltigkeit
  • Maschinenbau + Werkstoffe




 

Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

inform now
Appendix
Available only for authorised users
Literature
1.
Ashar A, Iqbal M, Bhatti IA, Ahmad MZ, Qureshi K, Nisar J, Bukhari IH (2016) Synthesis, characterization and photocatalytic activity of ZnO flower and pseudo-sphere: nonylphenol ethoxylate degradation under UV and solar irradiation. J Alloys Compd 678:126–136CrossRef
2.
Iqbal M (2019) Bioassays based on higher plants as excellent dosimeters for ecotoxicity monitoring: a review. Chem Int 5:1–80
3.
Iqbal M (2016) Vicia faba bioassay for environmental toxicity monitoring: a review. Chemosphere 144:785–802CrossRef
4.
Abbas M, Adil M, Ehtisham-ul-Haque S, Munir B, Yameen M, Ghaffar A, Shar GA, Tahir MA, Iqbal M (2018) Vibrio fischeri bioluminescence inhibition assay for ecotoxicity assessment: a review. Sci Total Environ 626:1295–1309CrossRef
5.
Ata S, Shaheen I, Qurat ul A, Ghafoor S, Sultan M, Majid F, Bibi I, Iqbal M (2018) Graphene and silver decorated ZnO composite synthesis, characterization and photocatalytic activity evaluation. Diam Relat Mater 90:26–31CrossRef
6.
Chen X, Wu Z, Liu D, Gao Z (2017) Preparation of ZnO photocatalyst for the efficient and rapid photocatalytic degradation of azo dyes. Nanoscale Res Lett 12:143CrossRef
7.
Wang Y, Zhu S, Chen X, Tang Y, Jiang Y, Peng Z, Wang H (2014) One-step template-free fabrication of mesoporous ZnO/TiO2 hollow microspheres with enhanced photocatalytic activity. Appl Surf Sci 307:263–271CrossRef
8.
Yu L, Chen W, Li D, Wang J, Shao Y, He M, Wang P, Zheng X (2015) Inhibition of photocorrosion and photoactivity enhancement for ZnO via specific hollow ZnO core/ZnS shell structure. Appl Catal B 164:453–461CrossRef
9.
Sun H, Wang L, Chu D, Ma Z, Wang A, Zheng Y, Wang L (2014) Facile template-free hydrothermal fabrication of ZnO hollow microspheres for gas sensing applications. Ceram Int 40:16465–16473CrossRef
10.
Qureshi K, Ahmad MZ, Bhatti IA, Zahid M, Nisar J, Iqbal M (2019) Graphene oxide decorated ZnWO4 architectures synthesis, characterization and photocatalytic activity evaluation. J Mol Liq 285:778–789CrossRef
11.
Alam U, Khan A, Raza W, Khan A, Bahnemann D, Muneer M (2017) Highly efficient Y and V co-doped ZnO photocatalyst with enhanced dye sensitized visible light photocatalytic activity. Catal Today 284:169–178CrossRef
12.
Shen R, Xie J, Zhang H, Zhang A, Chen X, Li X (2017) Enhanced solar fuel H2 generation over g-C3N4 nanosheet photocatalysts by the synergetic effect of noble metal-free Co2P cocatalyst and the environmental phosphorylation strategy. ACS Sustai Chem Eng 6:816–826CrossRef
13.
Lu D, Wang H, Zhao X, Kondamareddy KK, Ding J, Li C, Fang P (2017) Highly efficient visible-light-induced photoactivity of Z-scheme g-C3N4/Ag/MoS2 ternary photocatalysts for organic pollutant degradation and production of hydrogen. ACS Sustain Chem Eng 5:1436–1445CrossRef
14.
Miao X, Ji Z, Wu J, Shen X, Wang J, Kong L, Liu M, Song C (2017) g-C3N4/AgBr nanocomposite decorated with carbon dots as a highly efficient visible-light-driven photocatalyst. J Colloid Interface Sci 502:24–32CrossRef
15.
He Y, Wang Y, Zhang L, Teng B, Fan M (2015) High-efficiency conversion of CO2 to fuel over ZnO/g-C3N4 photocatalyst. Appl Catal B 168:1–8
16.
Wang J, Xia Y, Zhao H, Wang G, Xiang L, Xu J, Komarneni S (2017) Oxygen defects-mediated Z-scheme charge separation in g-C3N4/ZnO photocatalysts for enhanced visible-light degradation of 4-chlorophenol and hydrogen evolution. Appl Catal B 206:406–416CrossRef
17.
Guo F, Shi W, Guan W, Huang H, Liu Y (2017) Carbon dots/g-C3N4/ZnO nanocomposite as efficient visible-light driven photocatalyst for tetracycline total degradation. Sep Purif Technol 173:295–303CrossRef
18.
Rong X, Qiu F, Jiang Z, Rong J, Pan J, Zhang T, Yang D (2016) Preparation of ternary combined ZnO-Ag2O/porous g-C3N4 composite photocatalyst and enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity for degradation of ciprofloxacin. Chem Eng Res Des 111:253–261CrossRef
19.
Rackauskas S, Barbero N, Barolo C, Viscardi G (2017) ZnO nanowire application in chemoresistive sensing: a review. Nanomaterials 7:381CrossRef
20.
Ma X-Y, Zhang W-D (2009) Effects of flower-like ZnO nanowhiskers on the mechanical, thermal and antibacterial properties of waterborne polyurethane. Polym Degrad Stabil 94:1103–1109CrossRef
21.
Chen HM, Chen CK, Lin CC, Liu R-S, Yang H, Chang W-S, Chen K-H, Chan T-S, Lee J-F, Tsai DP (2011) Multi-bandgap-sensitized ZnO nanorod photoelectrode arrays for water splitting: an X-ray absorption spectroscopy approach for the electronic evolution under solar illumination. J Phys Chem C 115:21971–21980CrossRef
22.
Samadipakchin P, Mortaheb HR, Zolfaghari A (2017) ZnO nanotubes: preparation and photocatalytic performance evaluation. J Photochem Photobiol A Chem 337:91–99CrossRef
23.
Yang C, Yu J, Li Q, Yu Y (2017) Facile synthesis of monodisperse porous ZnO nanospheres for organic pollutant degradation under simulated sunlight irradiation: the effect of operational parameters. Mater Res Bull 87:72–83CrossRef
24.
Peng Z, Dai G, Chen P, Zhang Q, Wan Q, Zou B (2010) Synthesis, characterization and optical properties of star-like ZnO nanostructures. Mater Lett 64:898–900CrossRef
25.
Sun Y, Guo H, Zhang W, Zhou T, Qiu Y, Xu K, Zhang B, Yang H (2016) Synthesis and characterization of twinned flower–like ZnO structures grown by hydrothermal methods. Ceram Int 42:9648–9652CrossRef
26.
Li F, Ding Y, Gao P, Xin X, Wang ZL (2004) Single-crystal hexagonal disks and rings of ZnO: low-temperature, large-scale synthesis and growth mechanism. Angew Chem Int Ed 43:5238–5242CrossRef
27.
Kovačič S, Anžlovar A, Erjavec BT, Kapun G, Matsko NB, Žigon M, Žagar E, Pintar A, Slugovc C (2014) Macroporous ZnO foams by high internal phase emulsion technique: synthesis and catalytic activity. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 6:19075–19081CrossRef
28.
Zhang J, Li B, Han C, Liu J (2014) One-pot synthesis of foamed titania–silica composite and its photocatalytic performance. Mater Lett 129:50–53CrossRef
29.
Wang J, Pei C, Cheng L, Wan W, Zhao Q, Yang H, Liu SF (2016) Responses of three-dimensional porous ZnO foam structures to the trace level of triethylamine and ethanol. Sens Actuators B Chem 223:650–657CrossRef
30.
Ding D, Lan W, Yang Z, Zhao X, Chen Y, Wang J, Zhang X, Zhang Y, Su Q, Xie E (2016) A simple method for preparing ZnO foam/carbon quantum dots nanocomposite and their photocatalytic applications. Mater Sci Semicond Process 47:25–31CrossRef
31.
Jhao J-J, Yang M-H, Tseng WJ (2014) Effect of solids concentration on pore structure of ZnO-foams prepared by particle-stabilized foaming route. Ceram Int 40:4649–4654CrossRef
32.
Lu P, Xue D (2011) Bubble-assisted nanofabrication of macroporous ZnO foams. Nanosci Nanotechnol Lett 3:394–399CrossRef
33.
Yin M, Liu S (2014) Preparation of ZnO hollow spheres with different surface roughness and their enhanced gas sensing property. Sens Actuators B Chem 197:58–65CrossRef
34.
Tian Y, Lu H-B, Liao L, Li J-C, Liu C (2009) Synthesis and evolution of hollow ZnO microspheres assisted by Zn powder precursor. Solid State Commun 149:456–460CrossRef
35.
Bao Y, Wang C, Ma J (2016) Trisodium citrate as bridging and suppressing agent to control synthesis of ZnO hollow hierarchical microspheres and their photocatalytic properties. Ceram Int 42:1746–1755CrossRef
36.
Shakeel M, Arif M, Yasin G, Li B, Khan AU, Khan FU, Baloch MK (2018) Hollow mesoporous architecture: a high performance Bi-functional photoelectrocatalyst for overall water splitting. Electrochim Acta 268:163–172CrossRef
37.
Shakeel M, Li B, Arif M, Yasin G, Rehman W, Khan AU, Khan S, Khan A, Ali J (2018) Controlled synthesis of highly proficient and durable hollow hierarchical heterostructured (Ag-AgBr/HHST): a UV and visible light active photocatalyst in degradation of organic pollutants. Appl Catal B 227:433–445CrossRef
38.
Arif M, Yasin G, Shakeel M, Fang X, Gao R, Ji S, Yan D (2018) Coupling of Bifunctional CoMn-Layered Double Hydroxide@ Graphitic C3N4 Nanohybrids towards Efficient Photoelectrochemical Overall Water Splitting. Chem Asian J 13:1045–1052CrossRef
39.
Shakeel M, Li B, Yasin G, Arif M, Rehman W, Khan HD (2018) In situ fabrication of foamed titania carbon nitride nanocomposite and its synergetic visible-light photocatalytic performance. Ind Eng Chem Res 57:8152–8159CrossRef
40.
Liu Q, Chen T, Guo Y, Zhang Z, Fang X (2017) Grafting Fe(III) species on carbon nanodots/Fe-doped g-C3N4 via interfacial charge transfer effect for highly improved photocatalytic performance. Appl Catal B 205:173–181CrossRef
41.
Mahfooz-ur-Rehman Rehman W, Waseem M, Shah BA, Shakeel M, Haq S, Zaman U, Bibi I, Khan HD (2019) Fabrication of titanium-tin oxide nanocomposite with enhanced adsorption and antimicrobial applications. J Chem Eng Data 64:2436–2444CrossRef
42.
Niu P, Zhang L, Liu G, Cheng H-M (2012) Graphene-like carbon nitride nanosheets for improved photocatalytic activities. Adv Funct Mater 22:4763–4770CrossRef
43.
Yoo WC, Stein A (2011) Solvent effects on morphologies of mesoporous silica spheres prepared by pseudomorphic transformations. Chem Mater 23:1761–1767CrossRef
44.
Sun J-X, Yuan Y-P, Qiu L-G, Jiang X, Xie A-J, Shen Y-H, Zhu J-F (2012) Fabrication of composite photocatalyst g-C3N4-ZnO and enhancement of photocatalytic activity under visible light. Dalton Trans 41:6756–6763CrossRef
45.
Zhang W, Zhou L, Deng H (2016) Ag modified g-C3N4 composites with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity for diclofenac degradation. J Mol Catal A: Chem 423:270–276CrossRef
46.
Li X, Li M, Yang J, Li X, Hu T, Wang J, Sui Y, Wu X, Kong L (2014) Synergistic effect of efficient adsorption g-C3N4/ZnO composite for photocatalytic property. J Phys Chem Solids 75:441–446CrossRef
47.
Vignesh K, Kang S, Kwak BS, Kang M (2015) Meso-porous ZnO nano-triangles@ graphitic-C3N4 nano-foils: fabrication and Recyclable photocatalytic activity. Sep Purif Technol 147:257–265CrossRef
48.
Han X, Yu C, Yang J, Zhao C, Huang H, Liu Z, Ajayan PM, Qiu J (2016) Mass and charge transfer coenhanced oxygen evolution behaviors in CoFe‐layered double hydroxide assembled on graphene. Adv Mater Interfaces 3:1500782CrossRef
49.
Arif M, Yasin G, Shakeel M, Mushtaq MA, Ye W, Fang X, Ji S, Yan D (2019) Hierarchical CoFe-layered double hydroxide and gC3N4 heterostructures with enhanced bifunctional photo/electrocatalytic activity towards overall water splitting. Mater Chem Front 3:520–531CrossRef
50.
Nayak S, Mohapatra L, Parida K (2015) Visible light-driven novel gC3N4/NiFe-LDH composite photocatalyst with enhanced photocatalytic activity towards water oxidation and reduction reaction. J Mater Chem A 3:18622–18635CrossRef
51.
Wang J, Su F-Y, Zhang W-D (2014) Preparation and enhanced visible light photoelectrochemical activity of gC3N4/ZnO nanotube arrays. J Solid State Electrochem 18:2921–2929CrossRef
52.
Chang F, Xie Y, Li C, Chen J, Luo J, Hu X, Shen J (2013) A facile modification of g-C3N4 with enhanced photocatalytic activity for degradation of methylene blue. Appl Surf Sci 280:967–974CrossRef
53.
Zhu K, Neale NR, Miedaner A, Frank AJ (2007) Enhanced charge-collection efficiencies and light scattering in dye-sensitized solar cells using oriented TiO2 nanotubes arrays. Nano Lett 7:69–74CrossRef
54.
Wu N, Zhang W, Li B, Han C (2014) Nickel nanoparticles highly dispersed with an ordered distribution in MCM-41 matrix as an efficient catalyst for hydrodechlorination of chlorobenzene. Microporous Mesoporous Mater 185:130–136CrossRef
55.
Yu W, Xu D, Peng T (2015) Enhanced photocatalytic activity of gC3N4 for selective CO2 reduction to CH3OH via facile coupling of ZnO: a direct Z-scheme mechanism. J Mater Chem A 3:19936–19947CrossRef
56.
Paramasivam I, Jha H, Liu N, Schmuki P (2012) A review of photocatalysis using self-organized TiO2 nanotubes and other ordered oxide nanostructures. Small 8:3073–3103CrossRef
57.
Nayak S, Mohapatra L, Parida K (2015) Visible light-driven novel g-C3N4/NiFe-LDH composite photocatalyst with enhanced photocatalytic activity towards water oxidation and reduction reaction. J Mater Chem A 3:18622–18635CrossRef
58.
Kumar S, Kumar A, Kumar A, Balaji R, Krishnan V (2018) Highly efficient visible light active 2D–2D nanocomposites of N-ZnO-g-C3N4 for photocatalytic degradation of diverse industrial pollutants. ChemistrySelect 3:1919–1932CrossRef
59.
Sun J-X, Yuan Y-P, Qiu L-G, Jiang X, Xie A-J, Shen Y-H, Zhu J-F (2012) Fabrication of composite photocatalyst gC3N4–ZnO and enhancement of photocatalytic activity under visible light. Dalton Trans 41:6756–6763CrossRef
60.
Liu W, Wang M, Xu C, Chen S, Fu X (2013) Significantly enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity of g-C3N4 via ZnO modification and the mechanism study. J Mol Catal A: Chem 368:9–15CrossRef
61.
Pawar RC, Son Y, Kim J, Ahn SH, Lee CS (2016) Integration of ZnO with g-C3N4 structures in core–shell approach via sintering process for rapid detoxification of water under visible irradiation. Curr Appl Phys 16:101–108CrossRef
62.
Zhu Y-P, Li M, Liu Y-L, Ren T-Z, Yuan Z-Y (2014) Carbon-doped ZnO hybridized homogeneously with graphitic carbon nitride nanocomposites for photocatalysis. J Phys Chem C 118:10963–10971CrossRef
63.
Zhang J, Ma Z (2018) Porous g-C3N4 with enhanced adsorption and visible-light photocatalytic performance for removing aqueous dyes and tetracycline hydrochloride. Chin J Chem Eng 26:753–760CrossRef
64.
Chen D, Wang K, Ren T, Ding H, Zhu Y (2014) Synthesis and characterization of the ZnO/mpg-C3N4 heterojunction photocatalyst with enhanced visible light photoactivity. Dalton Trans 43:13105–13114CrossRef
65.
Liu W, Wang M, Xu C, Chen S (2012) Facile synthesis of g-C3N4/ZnO composite with enhanced visible light photooxidation and photoreduction properties. Chem Eng J 209:386–393CrossRef
66.
Qin Q, Shi Q, Sun W, Wan J, Hu Z (2018) Fabrication and interfacial electron transfer of ultrathin gC3N4 nanosheet/TNT@ CNTs ternary nanostructure heterojunction for high-efficiency visible-light-driven photocatalysis. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 29:8673–8687
Metadata
Title
Synthesis of foamed zinc oxide–silica spheres coupled with g-C3N4 nanosheets for visible light photocatalysis
Authors
Xiaorong Zhang
Muhammad Shakeel
Baoshan Li
Jinxi Zhang
Lei Wang
Publication date
22-07-2019
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Journal of Materials Science / Issue 20/2019
Print ISSN: 0022-2461
Electronic ISSN: 1573-4803
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-019-03848-3

Other articles of this Issue 20/2019

Journal of Materials Science 20/2019 Go to the issue

Energy materials

The influences of Mg intercalation on the structure and supercapacitive behaviors of MoS2

Composites & nanocomposites

Characterization methods of delamination in a plain woven CFRP composite

Polymers & biopolymers

4,4′-Fluoresceinoxy bisphthalonitrile (FPN)-incorporated polycaprolactone electrospun membranes: a portable sensor strip for detection of Fe3+ ions

Review

Flame retardant nanocomposites based on 2D layered nanomaterials: a review

Metals & corrosion

The effect of strain rate on the mechanisms of plastic flow and failure of an ECAE AZ31B magnesium alloy

Electronic materials

Effect of neutralization of poly(acrylic acid) binder on the dispersion heterogeneity of Li-ion battery electrodes

Premium Partners

    Image Credits