Photocatalytic performance of rice grain shaped ZnO microrods under solar irradiation

Rice grain shaped zinc oxide (ZnO) microrods are obtained following a facile solution synthesis procedure. These microrods have wurtzite crystal structure. Photocatalytic activity of as-synthesized and heat-treated (at similar to 200 degrees C) microrods was investigated for decomposition of methylene blue (MB) dye in aqueous solution under solar light irradiation. Heat-treated microrods exhibited enhanced degradation efficiency than the as-synthesized microrods within 90 min. The photocatalytic activity enhancement is attributed to rice grain shaped morphology and enhanced interface reactions of photogenerated charge carries with MB dye and its intermediates. Recyclability test confirms stability of the catalyst under experimental conditions. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.