Spectrophotometric studies of photo-induced degradation of Tertrodirect Light Blue (TLB) using a nanostructure zinc zirconate composite

Zinc zirconate nanopowder (ZZN) photocatalyst was prepared by sol–gel method using zinc acetate and zirconium acetylacetonate as precursors. The optimal calcination temperature was 800 °C and ZnZrO3 phase was formed. The structural and morphology properties of the nanocomposite were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX) and ultraviolet visible diffuse reflectance (UV-DRS). The SEM observation for ZZN showed the average grain size of 26 nm. UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS) of the nanocomposite showed an absorption edge at 355 nm. The catalytic activity of ZZN was investigated by degradation of Tertrodirect Light Blue (TLB) dye in water using UV–vis spectroscopy (UV–vis) with an initial concentration of 20 mg/L dye. The influence of the catalyst concentration, time of irradiation and pH on photodegradation of dye was investigated. The results showed that degradation of TLB dye can be conducted in the photocatalytic process. Accordingly, a degradation of more than 97% of dye was achieved by applying the optimal operational parameters with 30 mg/L of catalyst, pH 9 at 1 h irradiation.