Using rice husk ash as a SiO 2 source in the preparation of SiO 2 /Nb 2 O 5 and SiO 2 /ZnS heterostructures for photocatalytic application

This work presents the synthesis of SiO /Nb O and SiO /ZnS heterostructures using the microwave-assisted hydrothermal (MAH) method, which is fast and has low temperature. The silica used in the synthesis was obtained by burning the rice husk without any pre- or post-treatments. The obtained samples...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEnvironmental science and pollution research international Vol. 30; no. 26; p. 68477
Main Authors Ücker, Cátia Liane, Almeida, Suelen Rodrigues, Maron, Guilherme Kurz, Carreno, Neftali Lenin Villarreal, Morisso, Fernando Dal Pont, da Silva Cava, Sergio, Raubach, Cristiane Wienke
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Germany 01.06.2023
Subjects
Niobium - chemistry
Oryza
Silicon Dioxide - chemistry
Zinc Compounds
Heterostructure
Rice husk ash
Semiconductor
Photocatalysis
Microwave-assisted hydrothermal
Silica
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Summary:This work presents the synthesis of SiO /Nb O and SiO /ZnS heterostructures using the microwave-assisted hydrothermal (MAH) method, which is fast and has low temperature. The silica used in the synthesis was obtained by burning the rice husk without any pre- or post-treatments. The obtained samples were characterized using various techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and UV-visible. The obtained silica was found to be amorphous, and the materials used for modification showed characteristic of the type of synthesis used. SEM images showed that Nb O and ZnS interacted with the SiO surface, filling the voids. In the photocatalytic process, the heterostructures showed enhanced decolorization efficiency for dyes such as rhodamine B (RhB) and methylene blue (MB) compared to SiO . For RhB, the silica decolorized approximately 24%, and for MB, it discolored approximately 27%; SiO /Nb O showed 91.24% decolorization efficiency for RhB and 72.77% MB, while SiO /ZnS showed approximately 96% for RhB and 100% for MB. All samples were tested under the same conditions. This demonstrates that the use of rice husk residue not only improves the photocatalytic activity of heterostructures but also promotes the utilization of improperly discarded residues.
ISSN:1614-7499