Abstract
Removal of pollutants as well as hazardous compounds from the infected environments is considered a crucial subject. One of the contaminants that scientists still seek for an efficient and eco-friendly regime for its removal from the polluted environments is Tetracycline (TC) antibiotic. It has been affirmed that Photocatalysis could be utilized effectively to remove such types of contaminants. In this investigation, ZnMn2O4/rGO nanocomposite has been constructed as an efficient photocatalyst. First, the sol-gel procedure was applied as a simple way to synthesize mesoporous ZnMn2O4 nanoparticles (NPs). After that, the synthesized NPs were assembled on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) to construct the desired nanocomposite. Results indicated that ZnMn2O4/rGO-15 wt% photocatalyst possessed finite bandgap energy that permits absorbing a large quantity of radiation in the visible region. Furthermore, the photocurrent experiments affirmed that the photoinduced charges have a low capability to be recombined. The photocatalytic efficiency of the synthesized nanocomposites was examined towards the photooxidation of TC. The outcomes illustrated that TC could be effectively decomposed over the optimized ZnMn2O4/rGO photocatalyst when illuminated by visible light for 90 min. The constructed nanocomposites displayed pronounced durability and stability that recommend their applicability in industrial fields.