Characterization of microstructural and optical CoFe 2 O 4 /SiO 2 ferrite nanocomposite for photodegradation of methylene blue

Abstract

In this research, the CoFe 2 O 4 and CoFe 2 O 4 /SiO 2 nanocomposites have been synthesized using the co-precipitation method, and the microstructural properties of the samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction methods (XRD). The photodegradation activity of methylene blue for both nanocomposites were also investigated. The XRD pattern of CoFe 2 O 4 /SiO 2 nanocomposites revealed that the sample was polycrystalline and had a spinel crystal structure with group space of Fd3m. The size of crystallite nanoparticle is 29.4 ± 0.2 nm for CoFe 2 O 4 /SiO 2 and 26.8 ± 0.2 nm for CoFe 2 O 4 . The CoFe 2 O 4 /SiO 2 nanocomposites have smaller optical band gap compared to bare CoFe 2 O 4 due to smaller surface defect and larger particles size. The CoFe 2 O 4 /SiO 2 nanocomposites showed a more energetic photodegradation activity of methylene blue than CoFe 2 O 4 . The encapsulation of the SiO 2 matrix on the surface CoFe 2 O 4 nanoparticles enhances the photodegradation activity. Based on the result, nanocomposites CoFe 2 O 4 /SiO 2 and CoFe 2 O 4 are prospective as nano-photocatalyst and nano-adsorbent for organic pollutants.