Abstract
The coloured dyes released from the textile industrial effluents into water resources cause non-aesthetic pollution and aquatic life toxicity. Thus textile waste water treatment has been studied globally for many years. Photo catalytic properties of lead tungstate (PbWO4) nanoparticles (NPs) were analyzed for thiazine dyes and textile waste water under ultraviolet light conditions. XRD result showed the tetragonal scheelite structure of PbWO4 NPs. The crystallinity of the sample was confirmed from the SAED and XRD pattern. The existence of stretch vibration of Pb-O and O-W-O confirmed from FTIR results. EDAX displays optical absorption signals of Pb, W and O, and confirm the formation of PbWO4. Optical studies reveal that the band gap of the obtained nano particles increases with respect to their bulk counterparts that may be attributed to reduction in particle size. TEM images of PbWO4 powder consists of hexagonal particles and relatively uniform and smooth surface rod shaped prism-like structures. The photocatalytic activity of the prepared nanoparticles was analyzed through the degradation of textile waste water under UV light irradiation. The photocatalytic reaction rate constant was found to be 0.014/min. The small sized PbWO4 particles can adsorb more OH groups and oxidatively degrade the pollutants in the textile waste water.