Incorporation of Graphene Oxide/Metal Oxide into Modified Polyvinylidene Fluoride Membrane for the Degradation of Methylene Blue Dye through Adsorption-Photocatalytic Activity

Abstract

Recent studies have demonstrated substantial advancements in the treatment of dye wastewater through the synergistic incorporation of graphene oxide (GO) and metal oxide. This research focuses on the successful fabrication of a GO-based composite membrane using the non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) method. Two distinct metal oxides, titanium dioxide (TiO2) and zinc oxide (ZnO), were incorporated into polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) as the membrane carrier. The resulting membranes, namely PVDF/TiO2, PVDF/ZnO, and PVDF/TiO2/GO, were developed as photocatalyst membranes for the treatment of methylene blue (MB) dye contamination through adsorption-photocatalytic activity. The adsorption process was conducted for 30 minutes before initiating the photocatalytic activity. Upon UV-Vis measurement, the PVDF/TiO2/GO composite membrane exhibited superior dye degradation efficiency, reaching 91.89%, as compared to PVDF/TiO2 (91.38%) and PVDF/ZnO membrane (86.80%). This noteworthy enhancement in dye degradation performance, positions the PVDF/TiO2/GO composite membrane as a promising candidate for applications as a photocatalyst in the treatment of dye wastewater. The results underscore the potential effectiveness of this composite membrane in addressing environmental challenges associated with dye pollution.