Magnetically separable Fe2O3/g-C3N4 catalyst with enhanced photocatalytic activity

Abstract

A two-step method was developed to prepare magnetic separable Fe₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ photocatalysts. The samples were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy (UV-vis), photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The magnetic capability of the samples was investigated by vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) analysis. The crystal phase and the magnetic property of the Fe₂O₃ can be tuned by changing the calcination temperature. The Fe₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ photocatalyst showed enhanced photoactivity in degrading the rhodamine B (RhB) dye. Among the samples, the 10% Fe₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ showed the highest photocatalytic activity. It can degrade about 96.7% RhB in 4 h. The photocurrent results confirm that the combination of the two materials is beneficial for the separation of electron–hole pairs. The electron spin resonance (ESR) results indicates that ˙O₂⁻ and ˙OH are the main active species in the degradation process.