Novel CuCr2O4 embedded CuO nanocomposites for efficient photodegradation of organic dyes

Abstract

Novel photocatalyst based on CuO-CuCr2O4 nanocomposites was synthesized for different Cr3+ concentration by reflux condensation method, and their photocatalytic activity was evaluated by monitoring the photodegradation of methyl orange (MO) and methylene blue dyes (MB) under UV light irradiation. Phase evolution by X-ray diffraction showed monoclinic CuO and tetragonal CuCr2O4 as the components of the prepared nanocomposites. Morphological analysis by scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope revealed that the incorporation of Cr3+ in CuO lattice alters the morphology of CuO from microsphere to cluster shape. Photoluminescence spectra of CuO-CuCr2O4 nanocomposites exhibited reduced PL emissions compared to pure CuO, indicating the low recombination rate of photogenerated electrons and holes. As expected, the CuCr2O4 loaded CuO showed enhanced photocatalytic activity for MO and MB dyes, and the kinetic studies suggest that the degradation follows pseudo-firstorder kinetics. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of CuO-CuCr2O4 nanocomposites can be attributed to the presence of CuCr2O4 as an electron acceptor, which improves the effective charge separation in CuO. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.