Malaysian Journal of Analytical Sciences, Vol 27 No 6 (2023): 1326 – 1336

 

PHOTOCATALYTIC DEGRADATION OF OFLOXACIN ANTIBIOTIC BY g-C3N4/ZnO NANOCOMPOSITE UNDER VISIBLE LIGHT IRRADIATION

 

(Fotokatalitik Degradasi Ofloksasin Antibiotik oleh Nanokomposit g-C3N4/ZnO di Bawah Penyinaran Cahaya Tampak) 

 

Nor Fadilah Chayed1,2, Salma Izati Sinar Mashuri1,2, Izzati Shafiqah Zainal Abidin1,2, Muhd Firdaus Kasim1,2, Noor Haida Mohd Kaus4, Mohd Sufri Mastuli1,2, Umer Rashid5, and Mohd Lokman Ibrahim1,2,3*

 

1Centre for Functional Materials and Nanotechnology,

Institute of Science, Universiti Teknologi MARA, 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia

2School of Chemistry and Environment,

Faculty of Applied Sciences,

Universiti Teknologi MARA, 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia

3Industrial Waste Conversion Technology,

Universiti Teknologi MARA, 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia

4School of Chemical Sciences,

Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Penang, Malaysia

5Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology,

Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang Selangor, Malaysia

 

*Corresponding author: mohd_lokman@uitm.edu.my

 

 

Received: 15 September 2023; Accepted: 29 October 2023; Published:  29 December 2023

 

 

Abstract

A critical global environmental crisis has emerged due to the use of synthetic organic pollutants in industry, which resulted in the pollution of water. Recently, photocatalysis has attracted much attention for its potential to effectively, economically, and environmentally friendly remove organic pollutants from wastewater. ZnO is known as a potential photocatalyst for the degradation of wastewater in the UV region. However, ZnO has limited light absorption within the UV region and exhibits fast recombination of electron-hole pairs, which reduces its efficiency. To overcome this issue, a g-C3N4/ZnO photocatalyst for organic pollutant degradation in wastewater was developed to extend the light absorption towards the visible region. This research aims to investigate the performance of g-C3N4/ZnO nanocomposites in the degradation of ofloxacin (OFL). The ZnO was prepared using the sol-gel method, while the g-C3N4 was prepared using thermal decomposition. The composite catalyst of g-C3N4/ZnO was prepared by mixing g-C3N4 and ZnO. The prepared catalysts were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), UV-Vis NIR spectrophotometer, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and Brunauer Emmet Teller (BET). As a result of the composite photocatalyst combining ZnO and g-C3N4, the band gap decreased from 3.30 eV to 2.92 eV. The degradation of OFL using g-C3N4/ZnO nanocomposite is 11 times higher than that of pristine ZnO and double than that of pristine g-C3N4.

 

Keywords: g-C3N4/ZnO, ofloxacin, degradation, photocatalysis, wastewater treatment

 

Abstrak

Krisis alam sekitar global yang kritikal telah muncul akibat penggunaan bahan pencemar organik sintetik di dalam industri, mengakibatkan pencemaran air. Baru-baru ini, fotokatalisis telah menarik banyak perhatian kerana potensinya untuk merawat bahan organik daripada air sisa tercemar secara berkesan, ekonomikal dan mesra alam. ZnO dikenali sebagai fotomangkin berpotensi untuk degradasi air sisa tercemar di kawasan UV. Walau bagaimanapun, ZnO mempunyai penyerapan cahaya yang terhad dalam kawasan UV hanya disebabkan oleh tenaga jurang jalur yang besar (3.37 eV) dan mempamerkan penggabungan semula pantas pasangan lubang elektron, yang mengurangkan kecekapannya. Untuk mengatasi isu ini, fotomangkin g-C3N4/ZnO untuk degradasi bahan organik dalam rawatan air sisa telah dihasilkan untuk meningkatkan penyerapan cahaya ke arah cahaya tampak. Matlamat penyelidikan ini adalah untuk menyiasat prestasi nanokomposit g-C3N4/ZnO dalam degradasi ofloksasin (OFL). ZnO disediakan menggunakan kaedah sol-gel, manakala g-C3N4 disediakan menggunakan penguraian terma. Mangkin komposit g-C3N4/ZnO disediakan dengan mencampurkan g-C3N4 dan ZnO. Pemangkin yang disediakan telah dicirikan menggunakan pembelauan sinar-X-(XRD), mikroskopi imbasan elektron pancaran medan (FESEM), spektrofotometer UV-Vis NIR, mikroskopi transmisi elektron resolusi tinggi (HRTEM), dan Brunauer Emmet Teller (BET). Hasil daripada fotomangkin komposit yang menggabungkan ZnO dan g-C3N4, jurang jalur menurun daripada 3.30 eV kepada 2.92 eV. Degradasi ofloksasin menggunakan nanokomposit g-C3N4/ZnO adalah 11 kali lebih tinggi daripada ZnO dan 2 kali lebih tinggi daripada g-C3N4 tulen.

 

Kata kunci: g-C3N4/ZnO, ofloksasin, degradasi, fotokatalisis, rawatan air tercemar

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