Open AccessSynthesis of Z-scheme BiOCI/CuFe2O4 Composite with Enhanced Visible Light Photodegradation of Palm Oil Mill Effluent
Author(s) -
Jin Han Tan,
Jin–Chung Sin,
Sze–Mun Lam
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
iop conference series. earth and environmental science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1755-1307
pISSN - 1755-1315
DOI - 10.1088/1755-1315/945/1/012034
Subject(s) - photodegradation , photocatalysis , materials science , composite number , degradation (telecommunications) , fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , chemical engineering , palm oil , hydrothermal circulation , pulp and paper industry , nuclear chemistry , composite material , catalysis , chemistry , organic chemistry , computer science , telecommunications , food science , engineering
The palm oil industry generated thick brownish liquid waste known as POME (palm oil mill effluent). POME is one of the wastes that can seriously threaten the survival of aquatic life if discharged untreated. In this study, efficient photocatalytic degradation of POME by CuFe 2 O 4 decorated on BiOCl (BiOCl/CuFe 2 O 4 ) was reported. The Z-scheme BiOCl/CuFe 2 O 4 composite was successfully fabricated via a precipitation-hydrothermal method. The fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) result clearly displayed the presence of BiOCl and CuFe 2 O 4 in the composite photocatalyst. Compared to pure BiOCl, the composite photocatalyst demonstrated a redshift in the wavelength absorption and great visible light absorbing ability. The photodegradation experiments indicated that the BiOCl/CuFe 2 O 4 demonstrated exceptional POME degradation and decolourization efficiencies of 60% and 68%, respectively after 720 min illumination when compared to the single-phase component photocatalysts. The photocatalytic enhancement of BiOCl/CuFe 2 O 4 can be attributed to the efficient charge carrier separation via the Z-scheme heterojunction.