Ag2O/BaFe12O19 nanoheterojunctions for rapid photoelimination of atrazine herbicide in water under visible light

Abstract The progress in ceramic oxide photocatalysts is a central issue in the environmental remediation of herbicides in water. Atrazine (ATZ) is a potential herbicide applied in different cultivation and food-based manufacturing processes. This paper introduces a solution-based route to synthesize barium hexaferrite (BhF) nanostructures. Formerly, trace amounts (0.4–2.0 wt%) of silver oxide (Ag2O) were deposited on BhF to produce Ag2O/BhF nanoheterojunctions. Characterization of the produced materials significantly introduced Ag2O to the BhF photoactivity without altering the main structural or surface properties. The 1.2 wt%-added Ag2O/BhF favored light harvesting and reduced the bandgap to 1.56 eV. The dose optimization (0.8 L–1) of Ag2O/BhF exhibited rapid photoelimination of ATZ in 40 min with exceptional stability after five cycles. The photocatalytic competence enhancement of Ag2O/BhF is regarded as the efficient separation of photogenerated carriers by p-n nanojunction construction. This work presents the application of nanoheterojunction oxides for eco-friendly herbicide remediation.