Photocatalytic degradation of phenol over ZnO nanosheets immobilized on montmorillonite

Synthesis of a ZnO nanosheets/montmorillonite photocatalyst was conducted using a novel alkaline hydrolysis syntheses method in situ without calcining. The physicochemical properties of the material were determined by XRD, SEM and FTIR. The activity was evaluated in photocatalytic degradation of phenol with the prepared photocatalyst. The effects of various operating parameters including solution pH, photocatalyst dosage and initial phenol concentration on phenol degradation were investigated. Characterization showed that the ZnO nanosheets were successfully distributed in the surface of montmorillonite support. The degradation efficiency of phenol with the ZnO nanosheets/montmorillonite composites (88.5%) is high in comparison with ZnO photocatalyst (56%). The kinetics of the photodegradation was found to obey the Langmuir–Hinshelwood model.