Fabrication of p–n heterojunction Ag2O@Ce2O nanocomposites make enables to improve photocatalytic activity under visible light

Facile hydrothermal synthesis of BiVO4 nanomaterials for degradation of industrial waste

Bismuth Vanadate (BiVO₄) has been synthesized using simple hydrothermal technique while varying the pH of concentrated H₂SO₄. With the increase of pH values (from 06 to 10), the morphology of the synthesized material tuned in the form of nano-spheres and cubes in the range from 50 to 60 nm. The lateral affect tuned the bandgap of BiVO₄ from 2.47 eV to 2.50 eV which is significant in the context of present study. It is worth mentioning that desirous bandgap corresponds to the visible spectrum of the solar light being abundantly available and finds many applications in real life. The synthesized nanomaterial BiVO₄ has been characterized through UV-Vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Scanning electron microscope and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy. The synthesized BiVO₄ has been tested as photocatalyst for degradation of industrial pollutant from Leather Field Industry. Said catalyst (BiVO₄) successfully degraded the industrial pollutant after 3 h under solar light irradiation. Therefore, the BiVO₄ can be regarded as potential photocatalyst for degradation of industrial waste which is highly needed.

Dye Sequestration Using Biosynthesized Silver Nanoparticles Adsorbent in Aqueous Solutions

Nanomaterials have gained much attention in the field of environmental remediation, largely due to their high surface area-to-volume ratio and other unique physical, chemical, and biological characteristics that emerge due to its size effects. Metallic nanoparticles are traditionally manufactured using wet chemical processes; however, the chemicals utilized are generally hazardous and combustible. The biosynthesis of nanoparticles using a variety of plant resources is considered a green technology because it does not use toxic chemicals. This work focuses on the green synthesis of biogenetic silver nanoparticles and their use in the sequestration of colorants from aqueous solution. The extract of aquatic macrophyte Salvinia molesta (water hyacinth) has been employed to prepare silver nanoparticles by chemical reduction reaction. In the UV-visible spectrum of the synthesized silver nanoparticles, the absorbance peak was detected in the 420–430 nm range. The synthesized silver nanoparticles were used to sequester methylene blue (MB) dye in aqueous solution. About 121.04 mg/g was found as the highest adsorption capacity of methylene blue dye on the silver nanoparticles according to the Langmuir isotherm. It was observed that the experimental results and the pseudo-second order kinetics are in good agreement. As a result, the biosynthesized silver nanoparticle might be a potential adsorbent material in the field of environmental rehabilitation and cleanup.