Hydrothermal synthesis of hexagonal ZnO nanoplates used for photodegradation of methylene blue

Abstract

© 2020 Elsevier GmbH ZnO nanoplates were successfully synthesized by hydrothermal method in the solutions containing CTAB. The as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). In this research, the as-synthesized samples were hexagonal wurtzite ZnO structure without any impurities and were composed of hexagonal ZnO nanoplates with the vibration mode of Zn–O bonds. The photocatalytic activity of hexagonal ZnO nanoplates showed superior photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) of 94.15 % under UV light irradiation within 80 min. The degradation efficiency of reused hexagonal ZnO nanoplates as photocatalyst indicated that ZnO nanoplates are very stable and reusable under UV light illumination.