g-CN/graphene oxide/SnFeO ternary composite for the effective sunlight-driven photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue.

A broadly used dye, methylene blue (MB), adversely impacts human health and water resources, which triggers efficient methods for its elimination. Semiconductor-based heterogeneous photocatalysis is an environmentally friendly approach that effectively degrades organic pollutants. The purpose of the current work is to elucidate and validate the application of a promising g-CN/GO/SnFeO (CGS) composite for the environmental remediation of methylene blue dye. The ternary CGS composite has been synthesized using a solvothermal approach. The fabricated composites were analyzed through FTIR, XRD, SEM/EDX, UV-VIS spectroscopy, TEM, and XPS. The photoactivity of composites and affecting parameters (pH, HO dosage, composite amount, initial dye concentration, and irradiation time) were observed in sunlight illumination. The optimal conditions for photocatalytic degradation were pH = 5, photocatalyst dosage = 30 mg/100 mL, HO dosage = 6 mM, and initial dye concentration (IDC) of 10 ppm employing ternary CGS composite, and MB dye was degraded effectively within 1 h. Ninety-eight percent degradation efficacy was attained by employing ternary CGS composite under the optimized conditions. Scavenging analysis suggested that OH radicals were the key reactive oxygen species (ROS) responsible for the photodegradation of MB dye. Furthermore, the CGS nanocomposite exhibited outstanding recyclability of 84% after five consecutive runs, demonstrating its potential for use in practical applications, particularly pollutant removal.