Synthesis, characterization and photocatalytic activity of MoS2/ZnSe heterostructures for the degradation of levofloxacin

Abstract

Antibiotics have been extensively used over the last few decades. Due to their extensive usage and persistence in the environment, they are considered as emergent pollutants. It is, therefore, important to synthesize new materials for efficient antibiotic degradation. Herein, we report the MoS2/ZnSe heterostructures prepared by a simple ultrasonication method. Heterostructures were prepared with different ratios of MoS2 and ZnSe, i.e., 1:3, 1:1 and 3:1. Characterization of the heterostructures was done by UV-vis diffused reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis-DRS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and photoluminescence (PL) techniques to understand the morphology and surface chemistry. The results show that an efficient interface was formed to harness the visible light and degrade levofloxacin, which was monitored by gradual decreases in the UV-vis absorbance signal of levofloxacin. Among the prepared heterostructures and their pure counter parts, MoS2/ZnSe 3:1 (3:1 MZ) showed a better degradation activity of 73.2% as compared to pure MoS2 (29%) and ZnSe (17.1%) in the presence of visible light in a time span of two hours. The reusability studies showed that the catalytic performance of 3:1 MZ did not decrease significantly after three cycles. Moreover, the morphology and the crystal structure also remained unchanged.