Structural elucidation and environmental remediation potential of novel NiCoP@rGO nanocatalyst

Abstract

A simple hydrothermal method was used to hybridise reduced graphene oxide (rGO) with nickel cobalt phosphide (NiCoP) to produce an incredibly porous nanocomposite material. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Raman, Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM), UV-VIS, and XPS were utilised to investigate the crystal structure, functional groups, chemical bands, morphology, surface area and oxidation state of the synthesised NiCoP@rGO nanocomposite. According to the investigations, the NiCoP nanoparticles were adhered to the rGO surface. Additionally, the synthesised photocatalyst was used to degrading orange G (OG) and Eosin Yellow (EY) utilising UV light radiation. Ultimately, a number of operating conditions were optimised, including the effects of pH, catalyst dosage, concentration and electrolytes. The findings demonstrated that NiCoP@rGO exceeded pristine NiCoP in terms of photocatalytic efficiency. Reusability studies showed that it retained its initial efficiency even after the third cycle of reuse. Z-scheme is part of the photocatalytic mechanism that efficiently separates photogenerated electron-hole pairs in the presence of UV light. According to these findings, the synthesised NiCoP@rGO would be very beneficial for the degradation of organic industries.