CdSe–PVP QDs for Degradation of Methylene Blue via Photocatalytic Oxidative Cleavage Under Mild Visible Light

Abstract

Present article describes, synthesis of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) capped CdSe quantum dots (QDs) at pH 5, 7 and 9 under controlled atmosphere. Spherical CdSe QDs in the size domain of 2 nm to 10 nm revealed cubic crystal structure from XRD analysis. The CdSe QDs synthesized at pH 7 showed highest specific surface area as compared to those synthesized at pH 5 and 9. The photocatalytic activity of CdSe QDs was investigated against methylene blue (MB) in aqueous solution of different concentrations (5, 10 and 20 ppm) under irradiation of mild visible light (8 W lamp). Maximum of 64% degradation was obtained for 5 ppm MB solution catalyzed by CdSe QDs synthesized at pH 7.