MoS2/MXene composite material for high-performance removal of Rhodamine B dye: synthesis and application

Abstract

The contamination of water bodies with synthetic dyes poses a serious environmental concern due to their toxicity and persistence. Hazardous organic dyes, such as Rhodamine B, Congo Red, Methyl Orange, and Methylene Blue, present a major challenge in wastewater treatment, underscoring the need for highly efficient and sustainable adsorbent materials. Among these, Rhodamine B is particularly hazardous due to its carcinogenic nature, necessitating effective removal strategies. In this study, MoS2/MXene nanocomposites were synthesized via a hydrothermal method and characterized using XRD, FESEM, and TGA, confirming the successful integration of MoS2 with MXene nanosheets. The adsorbent demonstrated rapid and efficient RhB removal, achieving 99% elimination within 11 min and an adsorption capacity of 12.82 mg/g. Adsorption kinetics followed a pseudo-second-order model, indicating chemisorption as the dominant mechanism, while isotherm analysis showed good agreement with the Langmuir model (R2 = 0.9683), suggesting monolayer adsorption. These results demonstrate that MoS2/MXene nanocomposites are highly promising candidates for sustainable and efficient dye removal from wastewater.