Novel ZnWO₄/RGO nanocomposite as high performance photocatalyst

In this study, we report the synthesis of nanocomposite material composed of zinc tungstate (ZnWO₄) and reduced graphene oxide (RGO) as photocatalyst by a simple microwave irradiation technique. The prepared nanocomposites have been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR), photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) and UV-Visible spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activities of the prepared nanocomposites are evaluated in terms of the efficiencies of photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) dye in aqueous solution under visible light irradiation. The prepared nanocomposites showed excellent photodegradation efficiency compared to the commercial TiO₂ under visible light irradiation. The activity of the catalyst towards methyl orange (MO) and rhodamine B (RB) was also good. Further, in view of the low cost, simple preparation method and high catalytic activity of the material, it is expected that the prepared nanocomposite can serve as an environment friendly photocatalyst for treating the large scale industrial waste waters.