Hydroxide MgSn(OH)6: A promising new photocatalyst for methyl orange degradation

Highly crystalline hydroxide MgSn(OH)(6) (MHS) polyhedral particles were synthesized by changing reaction time (10, 15 and 20 h) in a hydrothermal process. The structural and morphological poperties of obtained samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The photocatalytic activity of the MHS was further evaluated by the degradation of methyl orange (MO) under ultraviolet (UV) light illumination. Compared with commercial TiO2 (Degussa P25), the MHS prepared for 15 h showed similar degradation efficiency of methyl orange (MO), mainly due to its higher specific surface area (55 m(2)g(-1)) and better optical properties.