Graphene Oxide/Zinc Oxide (GO/ZnO) Nanocomposite as a Superior Photocatalyst for Degradation of Methylene Blue (MB)-Process Modeling by Response Surface Methodology (RSM)

The photocatalytic performance of graphene oxide/zinc oxide (GO/ZnO) nanocomposite was investigated for degradation of methylene blue (MB) from wastewater and was compared with that of zinc oxide (ZnO), graphene oxide (GO) and carbon nanotube/zinc oxide (CNT/ZnO). The properties of the GO/ZnO nanocomposite were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The SEM and TEM results revealed the nanostructure of the composite. The photocatalytic process was modeled by response surface methodology (RSM), considering four independent factors. The significance of the model was approved by analysis of variance (ANOVA) (determination coefficient R2 = 0.95, R2adj = 0.91). The optimum conditions of the process were found to be at photocatalyst dosage, initial pH, H2O2 concentration and irradiation time of 2.1 g L-1, 4.5, 3.5 × 10-4 mol L-1 and 140 min, respectively. The removal of MB over GO/ZnO was 99% under the optimum conditions and was superior than that over GO and CNT/ZnO. According to Pareto analysis of the modeling, the irradiation time and photocatalyst dosage were the most effective factors on the decolorization efficiency of methylene blue, respectively.