Robustic and hybrid cobalt doped BaFe12O19 hexaferrites for the photocatalytic degradation of Congo Red for wastewater treatment

Himanshi; Subbulakshmi Ganesan; Piyus Kumar Pathak; M D Ramesh; Jahangeer Ahmed; Suman; Ankit Verma; Chan Choon Kit; Natrayan Lakshmaiya; Rohit Jasrotia

doi:10.1038/s41598-024-82273-2

Robustic and hybrid cobalt doped BaFe₁₂O₁₉ hexaferrites for the photocatalytic degradation of Congo Red for wastewater treatment

Sci Rep. 2024 Dec 28;14(1):31051. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-82273-2.

Authors

Himanshi¹, Subbulakshmi Ganesan², Piyus Kumar Pathak³, M D Ramesh⁴, Jahangeer Ahmed⁵, Suman⁶, Ankit Verma⁷, Chan Choon Kit⁸, Natrayan Lakshmaiya⁹, Rohit Jasrotia^{10

11

12

13}

Affiliations

¹ School of Physics and Materials Science, Shoolini University, Solan, H.P., India. [email protected].
² Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, School of Sciences, JAIN (Deemed to Be University), Bangalore, Karnataka, India.
³ Department of Applied Sciences-Chemistry, NIMS Institute of Engineering & Technology, NIMS University Rajasthan, Jaipur, India.
⁴ Instituto de Alta Investigación, Universidad de Tarapacá, 1000000, Arica, Chile.
⁵ Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, 11451, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
⁶ University Centre for Research & Development, Chandigarh University, Mohali, Punjab, 140413, India.
⁷ Faculty of Science and Technology, ICFAI University, Himachal Pradesh, India.
⁸ Faculty of Engineering and Quantity Surveying, INTI International University, Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, 71800, Malaysia.
⁹ Department of Research and Innovation, Saveetha School of Engineering, SIMATS, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 602105, India.
¹⁰ School of Physics and Materials Science, Shoolini University, Solan, H.P., India. [email protected].
¹¹ Faculty of Engineering and Quantity Surveying, INTI International University, Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, 71800, Malaysia. [email protected].
¹² Centre for Research Impact & Outcome, Chitkara University Institute of Engineering and Technology, Chitkara University, Rajpura, Punjab, 140401, India. [email protected].
¹³ Department of Physics, Graphic Era Deemed to be University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India. [email protected].

Abstract

The industrial sector faces a significant challenge in finding the highly effective and efficient treatments for harmful dye-based color effluents. In this study, pure and cobalt doped barium hexaferrite of chemical formula, Ba_1-xCo_xFe₁₂O₁₉ (x = 0-0.06) are made via sol-gel auto-combustion (SC) methodology. These nano hexaferrite based catalysts are employed for the photodegradation of Congo Red (CR) pollutant. X-rays diffraction investigation confirms the creation of pristine M-type with a hexagonal structure for the prepared hexaferrites. Field emission scanning electron microscopy analysis shows the existence of the hexagonal-shaped grains with well-defined grain boundaries. The reduction in the band gap of prepared hexaferrites are observed with the cobalt doping which is helpful in enhancing the photocatalytic performance. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy examination verifies the oxidation states of all elements found in the fabricated specimens. From the photocatalytic measurements, it is observed that the CR dye attains the removal percentage of 87.90%, 90.73%, 91.86% and 94.88% for the BaFe₁₂O₁₉ (x = 0.00), Ba_0.08Co_0.02Fe₁₂O₁₉ (x = 0.02), Ba_0.06Co_0.04Fe₁₂O₁₉ (x = 0.04), and Ba_0.04Co_0.06Fe₁₂O₁₉ (x = 0.06) hexaferrites under the natural sunlight of two hours. In addition, the reusability potential of prepared hexaferrites is also studied over the six consecutive experimental cycles. The excellent photodegradation performance of the Co- doped barium M-type hexaferrites for the removal of CR dye makes them highly useful for the wastewater remediation.

Keywords: BaFe12O19; Congo Red; Photocatalysis; Reusability; Water purification.

Grants and funding

RSP2024R391/King Saud University