Enhanced photocatalytic activity of Zn3(PO4)2/ZnO composite semiconductor prepared by different methods

Abstract In this work, the photocatalytic activity of Zn3(PO4)2 was effectively enhanced based on the Zn3(PO4)2/ZnO composites. Hence, the photocatalytic properties were investigated using various ratio in ZnO and dissimilar approaches for the synthesis (coprecipitation and solid-state reaction). The physicochemical and morphological composition of the as-prepared catalysts were characterized by XRD, SEM, EDS and FTIR techniques. Furthermore, the photocatalytic activities of the Zn3(PO4)2 were improved towards the degradation of Rhodamine B RhB dye under UV irradiations. As an outcome, the degradation time duration and efficacy of Zn3(PO4)2 has effectively enhanced using the solids reacting method with 20% percent ZnO.