Photocatalytic activity of Zn-Cu-S alloy for the removal of dye pollutant: Synthesis, characterization, optimization and DFT insights, By Hossein Raanaei

Research

Title	Photocatalytic activity of Zn-Cu-S alloy for the removal of dye pollutant: Synthesis, characterization, optimization and DFT insights
Type	Article
Keywords	Zn based alloy, Mechanical alloying, Photocatalytic degradation, Electronic structure, Response surface method
Journal	MATERIALS RESEARCH BULLETIN
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.materresbull.2023.112175
Researchers	Saeid Zarei (First researcher) , Hossein Raanaei (Second researcher) , Reza Vatan Meidanshahi (Third researcher)

Abstract

This study synthesized Zn-Cu-S alloy powder using mechanical alloying to eliminate EBT dye pollution. Multiple techniques were used to characterize the alloyed materials. The formation of intermetallic phase, Cu5Zn8, was realized, after 35 h milling process. After light irradiation, both the adsorption and photocatalytic activity of the alloyed material were observed. The EBT removal process was optimized by varying pH, lamp power, and alloy dosage (g/L) parameters. Response surface plots were employed to investigate the removal percentage of dye. Isotherm and kinetic models were utilized to investigate EBT uptake. The maximum adsorption capacity (qmL) of 222.8 mg/g was significantly higher than previously reported values. The maximum removal rate was determined to be approximately 87%. DFT calculations estimated the optimized geometry of the ground state of a semiconductor alloy by frontier molecular orbitals and explained the origin of the alloy photocatalyst’s electronic transitions.