Reduced graphene oxide modified NiFe-calcinated layered double hydroxides for enhanced photocatalytic removal of methylene blue

Calcined layered double hydroxides (CLDH) are one of the remarkable photocatalysts passionately studied for photodecolorization of organic dyes. NiFe-CLDH was successfully modified by reduced graphene oxide (RGO) through a facile in situ crystallization technique. The obtained RGO/NiFe-CLDH composites were fully characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), highresolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The results analysis indicated that RGO sheets could work as base course to prompt the growth of LDH crystallites and NiFe-LDH lamellar crystal promiscuously distributed on the sheets with a strong interplay between each other. The photocatalytic performance of RGO/NiFeCLDH composites toward decolorization of methylene blue tightly depended on the mass fraction of RGO and calcinated temperature. At the RGO weight loading of 1%, calcination temperature of 500 degrees C, the photocatalytic degradation efficiency of RGO/NiFe-CLDH composites reached 93.0% within 5.0 h. The enhanced activity of RGO/ NiFe-CLDH composites may be due to the concerted catalysis effect between two constituents of as-prepared composites. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.