Novel Zinc Ferrite Anchored Graphene Oxide Magnetic Nanocomposite for Photocatalytic Degradation of Textile Dyes

Abstract

Abstract A simple co‐precipitation method has been adopted for the preparation of magnetically separable graphene zinc ferrite nanocomposite for highly efficient photocatalytic degradation of malachite green, fast green and eriochrome black T under visible light irradiation. The anchoring of zinc ferrite nanoparticles on graphene sheets not only inhibits the agglomeration of zinc ferrite nanoparticles but also decreases the band gap from 1.93 to 1.40 eV. The composite exhibits superior degradation efficiency in presence of hydrogen peroxide for all dyes under study. The dye degradation follows a pseudo first‐order reaction. The photocatalyst showed excellent performance even in the presence of highly concentrated inorganic salts and for a wide range of pH values. The composite retains its degradation capacity up to ten cycles. The composite described here can find potential applications for effective wastewater remediation from textile industries.