Sains Malaysiana
47(2)(2018): 253-259
http://dx.doi.org/10.17576/jsm-2018-4702-06
Cr2O3 Nanoparticles Anchored
on ZnO Nanorods as Active Heterostructure Catalysts for Phenol Degradation
(Zarah
Nano Cr2O3 Bergabung pada Rod Nano ZnO sebagai
Pemangkin Heterostruktur Aktif untuk Degradasi Fenol)
Sze-Mun Lam1*,
Jin-Chung Sin2 & Abdul Rahman Mohamed3
1Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and
Green Technology
Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Jalan
Universiti, Bandar Barat, 31900 Kampar,
Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia
2Department of Petrochemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and
Green Technology
Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Jalan
Universiti, Bandar Barat, 31900 Kampar,
Perak Darul Ridzuan, Malaysia
3School of Chemical Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Engineering
Campus
Seri Ampangan, 14300 Nibong Tebal, Pulau Pinang,Malaysia
Diserahkan: 25 Mac 2017/Diterima: 1 Ogos 2017
ABSTRACT
With
the rapid civilization and industrialization, water pollution is becoming more
and more intricate. Heterogeneous photocatalysis using metal oxide loaded ZnO
nanorods is a well-known environmental technology to degrade toxic organic
pollutants. In this study, Cr2O3 particles anchored on
the ZnO nanorods (Cr2O3/ZnO) were successfully synthesized
by a hydrothermal-deposition
technique. Microscopic and crystallographic analyses indicated that the
synthesized samples consisted of two-phase heterostructure of Cr2O3 and ZnO. The photocatalytic results showed that the phenol degradation by Cr2O3 /ZnO heterostructures was higher than those of pure ZnO and commercial TiO2.
The synergetic effect between Cr2O3 and ZnO was the
pivotal reason for the improvement of photoactivity as proven by the
photoluminescence and terephthalic acid–photoluminescence analyses.
Keywords: Cr2O3;
nanocomposite; phenol; photocatalysis; ZnO nanorod
ABSTRAK
Dengan
pertamadunan dan perindustrian
yang pesat, isu alam
sekitar seperti pencemaran air menjadi semakin rumit. Fotopemangkinan
heterogen menggunakan logam oksida digabungkan rod nano ZnO adalah
teknologi alam sekitar yang terkenal untuk degradasi bahan pencemar
organik toksik. Dalam kajian ini, heterostruktur Cr2O3/ZnO dengan zarah Cr2O3 berpasang pada rod nano ZnO telah berjaya
disintesis oleh teknik hidroterma-pemendapan. Analisis mikroskopik dan kristalografi
menunjukkan bahawa sampel yang disintesis terdiri daripada dua
fasa berheterostruktur Cr2O3
dan ZnO. Keputusan fotopemangkinan
menunjukkan bahawa degradasi fenol oleh heterostruktur
Cr2O3/ZnO adalah lebih tinggi berbanding
dengan ZnO tulen dan TiO2 komersial. Kesan
sinergi di antara Cr2O3 dan ZnO adalah sebab utama peningkatan
aktiviti pemfotomangkinan seperti yang dibuktikan oleh analisa
fotoluminasi dan asid tereftalik-fotoluminasi.
Kata
kunci: Cr2O3;
fenol; fotopemangkinan; komposit nano; rod nano ZnO
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*Pengarang untuk surat-menyurat; email:
lamsm@utar.edu.my