Synthesis and photocatalytic activity of ZnO-CuPc for methylene blue and potassium cyanide degradation

In this study, samples of ZnO modified with copper (II) phthalocyanine (CuPc) (0.1% and 0.5% wt) were synthesized via the sol-gel method. The catalysts were characterized by DTA-TGA analysis, infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Ultraviolet diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS-UV) was used to estimate the band gap energy (Eg) of the prepared materials, and the textural properties of the solids were determined from N2 adsorption isotherms. The photocatalytic activity of the ZnO-CuPc catalysts was evaluated on the degradation of the methylene blue (MB) and potassium cyanide (KCN) under UV and visible light. The dye concentration was determined spectrophotometrically at 665 nm during the treatment. The CN- content during the photocatalytic reaction was analyzed potentiometrically using a cyanide ion-selective electrode. Both pollutants were completely degraded under both light sources; however, the highest degradation rate was observed for MB decomposition achieving complete degradation in 150 min.