title: Ce(3+)-ion-induced visible-light photocatalytic degradation and electrochemical activity of ZnO/CeO2 nanocomposite.
abstract: In this study, pure ZnO, CeO2 and ZnO/CeO2 nanocomposites were synthesized using a thermal decomposition method and subsequently characterized using different standard techniques. High-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements confirmed the oxidation states and presence of Zn(2+), Ce(4+), Ce(3+) and different bonded oxygen species in the nanocomposites. The prepared pure ZnO and CeO2 as well as the ZnO/CeO2 nanocomposites with various proportions of ZnO and CeO2 were tested for photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange, methylene blue and phenol under visible-light irradiation. The optimized and highly efficient ZnO/CeO2 (90:10) nanocomposite exhibited enhanced photocatalytic degradation performance for the degradation of methyl orange, methylene blue, and phenol as well as industrial textile effluent compared to ZnO, CeO2 and the other investigated nanocomposites. Moreover, the recycling results demonstrate that the ZnO/CeO2 (90:10) nanocomposite exhibited good stability and long-term durability. Furthermore, the prepared ZnO/CeO2 nanocomposites were used for the electrochemical detection of uric acid and ascorbic acid. The ZnO/CeO2 (90:10) nanocomposite also demonstrated the best detection, sensitivity and performance among the investigated materials in this application. These findings suggest that the synthesized ZnO/CeO2 (90:10) nanocomposite could be effectively used in various applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Chile, Beauchef 850, Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: Saravanan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rajendran
authors.affiliation: Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Science, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Jalan Tungku Link, Gadong, BE 1410, Brunei Darussalam.
authors.forename: Mohammad Mansoob
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Chile, Beauchef 850, Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gracia
authors.affiliation: Metallurgy and Materials Science Research Institute, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.
authors.forename: Jiaqian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Qin
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Chemistry, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: Vinod Kumar
authors.initials: VK
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Physics, University of Madras, Guindy Campus, Chennai, 600 025, India.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Arumainathan