Adsorption-Induced Dye Stability of Cationic Dyes on Clay Nanosheets

Rhodamine 6G (R6G) was adsorbed on smectite clays, a natural montmorillonite, a synthetic saponite, and synthetic hectorites, and the decolorization of the dyes upon visible light irradiation was examined for aqueous suspensions and cast films. Excellent dye stability was achieved when a natural montmorillonite was used. Apart from R6G, better photostability was also achieved when the tris(2,2'-bipyridine)ruthenium(II) complex was adsorbed on a natural montmorillonite. The excited state of the dye was quenched efficiently by the impurities in the natural montmorillonite. From the relationship between the excited-state quenching (as derived from photoluminescence quantum efficiency and photoluminescence intensity) and the decolorization rate constant, the quenching of the excited state of the dye adsorbed on the natural montmorillonite was proposed as the important mechanism for the stabilization of dyes upon photoirradiation.