Synthesis, characterization, and photocatalytic degradation of anionic dyes using a novel ZnO/activated carbon composite

Zinc oxide/activated carbon from Thapsia transtagana stems (ZnO/ACTTS) composite demonstrated good photocatalytic properties for removing methyl orange (MO) dye from aqueous solution. This study utilized the chemical activation method using phosphoric acid to prepare activated carbon, which was then used to synthesize the ZnO/ACTTS composites by the hydrothermal technique at different percentages of the amount of ZnO (15, 30, 50 and 75 %). XRD, FTIR, and SEM-EDX were used to characterize the produced composite materials. The photocatalytic degradation of the catalysts was investigated for the degradation of MO dye from aqueous solution. The effects of zinc oxide content, pH of solution, and catalyst dosage were studied. Experimental results indicate that the ZnO/ACTTS (75 %) composite with exhibited good activity under acid pH conditions with an optimal catalyst dosage of 0.5 g/L. Photodegradation kinetics followed a pseudo-second order kinetics. ZnO/ACTTS composite will be a catalyst to degrade a wide range of dyes from the textile industry in the aquatic medium.