Design of direct Z-scheme superb magnetic nanocomposite photocatalyst Fe3O4/Ag3PO4@Sep for hazardous dye degradation

Z-scheme Fe-3 O-4/Ag-3 PO4 @Sep magnetic nanocomposite photocatalyst was prepared via an eco-friendly coprecipitation approach. Various analytical methods were used to assess the structure, the morphology, and the optical absorption properties of the photocatalyst. The sepiolite as support of Ag-3 PO4 and Fe-3 O-4 nanoparticles, prevented the aggregation and the photo-corrosion of the bare Ag-3 PO4, and enhanced the photocatalytic stability and activity of the photocatalyst by a synergetic effect. Further, the band gap energy of the nanocomposite photocatalyst, as determined from the density functional theory calculations, was reduced, from 2.59 eV for Ag-3 PO4 (1 1 0), and from 2.98 eV for Fe-3 O-4 (2 2 0), to about 2.37 eV for Fe-3 O-4/Ag-3 PO4 @Sep. The obtained dye degradation rate value of 0.480 min(-1), was 69 times superior to pure Fe-3 O-4, 5 times higher than the bare Ag-3 PO4, and 3 times higher than Ag-3 PO4 @Sep. More importantly, Fe-3 O-4/Ag-3 PO4 @Sep shows continuous photocatalytic activity, even after three cycles of reuse.

Automated summary

A Z-scheme Fe-3 O-4/Ag-3 PO4 @Sep magnetic nanocomposite photocatalyst was prepared using an eco-friendly coprecipitation method. Various analytical methods were used to evaluate the structure, morphology, and optical absorption properties of the photocatalyst. It was found that the catalyst exhibited enhanced stability and activity, with a reduced band gap energy and significantly improved dye degradation rate compared to pure Fe-3 O-4 and bare Ag-3 PO4.