Intermediate electron trap levels generation and enhanced carrier concentration in ZnO by strontium and molybdenum co-doping: an effective approach for dye degradation.

In this work, an attempt to augment the photocatalytic dye degrading ability of zinc oxide thin films by suitably doping strontium + molybdenum(Sr + Mo). The ZnO:Sr:Mo film were coated onto glass substrates via automatic nebulizer spray pyrolysis method. The photocatalytic studies were done by degrading two dyes viz methyl orange (MO) and methylene blue (MB) and the efficiency of the prepared films was tested at different pH levels. A 97% and 84% decomposition are observed for MB and MO dyes, respectively, in 60 min. The kinetics and reusability of the catalyst were studied. The results indicated that the catalysts exhibit considerable reusability and high photocatalytic efficiency. A possible mechanism for the improved degradation has been elaborated with the support of characterization studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]