Visible light activated MoS2/ZnO composites for photocatalytic degradation of ciprofloxacin antibiotic and hydrogen production

In the photocatalysis process, photon energy is mainly converted into chemical energy with the help of both light and catalyst. This process can be used in different applications like photocatalytic degradation of hazardous compounds, fixation of nitrogen, hydrogen production, air purification, water splitting, carbon dioxide reduction etc. In this research work, multiplicative ZnO and MoS2/ZnO (MZ) composites were synthesized using green chemical methods like the hydrothermal process and used in two different applications i) photocatalytic degradation of ciprofloxacin (CIP) antibiotic and ii) hydrogen production. CIP is not easily biodegradable and is mainly used in various antibacterial treatments. The photocatalytic activity was tested for ZnO and different MoS2/ZnO composites along with this the effect of different amounts of catalysts doses was studied. MoS2/ZnO composites exhibit superior photocatalytic performance than ZnO for photocatalytic degradation of CIP. Using the LC-MS technique possible degradation pathways are proposed. The same photocatalyst materials were used to test the photocatalytic H2 production activity. H2 production rates were found to be 22, 39 and 235 mu mol/g/h for ZnO, MoS2 and MZ-30 composite respectively. Superior photocatalytic activity of MZ-30 composite than ZnO is chiefly attributed to the extended light absorption capacity, effective charge transfer, suitable band alignment between the ZnO and MoS2, minimum recombination of charge carriers etc.

Automated summary

In the process of photocatalysis, photon energy is converted into chemical energy using light and catalyst. This process has various applications such as degradation of hazardous compounds, nitrogen fixation, hydrogen production, air purification, water splitting, and carbon dioxide reduction. The study focuses on the synthesis of ZnO and MoS2/ZnO composites and their applications in photocatalytic degradation of ciprofloxacin antibiotic and hydrogen production. The MoS2/ZnO composites show superior photocatalytic activity compared to ZnO, attributed to extended light absorption capacity, effective charge transfer, suitable band alignment, and minimum recombination of charge carriers.