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This study reports the efficient synthesis and thorough characterization of novel graphene doped BiV O 4 / ZnO nanocomposites. Among these doping percentages, 3% BVZO/G is optimized composite as it shows the highest photocatalytic performance i–e 98% and 95% among all the doping percentages. Under the visible light exposure λ ⩾ 420 nm , the decomposition of tetracycline (TC) and methylene blue has been studied to evaluate the photocatalytic activity of the prepared composites. The characterization techniques such as photoluminescence spectroscopy, UV visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared have been used to investigate the optical, structural, morphological, and vibrational properties respectively. The findings of the research indicate that the doping of graphene resulted in enhanced absorption of visible light and efficient mitigation of charge carrier recombination. To check the stability of optimized photocatalyst, reusability test has been performed. Additionally, role of active species has been examined using different scavengers in trapping experiment. By understanding the composite material for the enhanced photocatalysis, the results of this research help to design a sustainable and efficient photocatalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Construction of a homojunction is an effective strategy for effective charge transfer to suppress charge carrier recombination in augmented photocatalysis. The present work reveals the synthesis of homojunction formation through the reinforcement of Cd nanostructures into a solid lattice of zinc vanadate (Zn3V2O8, ZnV) using the hydrothermal method. The formation of a homojunction between cadmium vanadate (CdV, Cd3V2O8) and ZnV was confirmed by various spectroscopic and electron microscopic techniques such as Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) associated with energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) mapping, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometry (UV–Vis). The synthesized material was explored for photocatalytic hydrogen (PC H2) production using the water splitting process under visible-light illumination. The spectroscopic and experimental results revealed that the formation of a CdV/ZnV homojunction significantly improved the transport of photogenerated charge carriers (electron–hole pairs) and thus resulted in enhanced H2 production efficiency (366.34 μmol g−1 h−1) as compared to pristine ZnV (229.09 μmol g−1 h−1) and CdV (274.91 μmol g−1 h−1) using methanol as a sacrificial reagent (SR) with water under visible-light illumination. The synergistic effect of Cd on ZnV NPs resulted in band gap reduction and broadened visible light absorption which was attributed to enhanced H2 production. The current study explains how a homojunction affects various features of important factors behind photocatalytic activity, which supports significant insights into the advancement of materials in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molybdenum Disulphide (MoS2) being an efficient photocatalyst due to its unique optical and structural properties, have attained the attention of researchers during last decade. However, poor absorption of light, fast recombination of charge carriers and low active sites are the barriers for its effective use as a photocatalyst. These constraints could be removed by the incorporation of transition metals in pure MoS2. To that end, we employed a facile and cost-effective hydrothermal method for preparation of pure and copper (Cu) doped (1, 3, 5, and 7%) MoS2 nanomaterials to investigate their degradation efficiency against methylene blue (MB) dye at different pH values (04–10) of reaction solution. Various characterization techniques like SEM, EDX, XRD, FTIR, UV–Vis, and PL were utilized to explore the morphological, compositional, structural, vibrational and optical properties of fabricated nanomaterials. The results revealed that 5% Cu doped MoS2 is an optimal sample among all other fabricated materials, having hexagonal structure, lowest band gap and recombination time of photogenerated charge carriers. This leads to its extraordinary performance in the degradation of MB (i.e.94%) in basic medium having pH 09. The outcomes of this research would be a valuable contribution toward advancing the development of exceptionally efficient TMDs photocatalysts for degradation of organic pollutants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]