Wet Chemical Synthesis of Sb4O5Cl2 Used as an Effective Photocatalyst for Methylene Blue and Crystal Violet Degradation under Visible Light Irradiation

The present scientific contribution aims to elaborate antimony oxychloride Sb4O5Cl2 via a wet chemistry method and to study its photocatalytic activity to degrade methylene blue and crystal violet cationic dyes. The prepared samples were characterized using powder X-ray diffraction PXRD, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy FTIR, Scanning electron microscopy analysis SEM and UV-Visible measurements. PXRD results revealed that the Sb4O5Cl2 was successfully formed in a monoclinic phase structure with P21/a space group. FTIR results show the presence of all characteristic bands that distinguished the prepared compound mainly include Sb−O, Sb−O−Sb, and Sb=O vibrating modes bands located at 503, 607, and 832 cm-1, respectively. SEM micrograph showed that the microstructure of the prepared antimony oxychloride is composed of particles with sand rose morphology. UV-Visible outcomes demonstrated that our synthesized Sb4O5Cl2 is an efficient photocatalyst for the degradation of both methylene blue MB and crystal violet CV targeted dyes. MB degradation reached 93.67% after 30 min while CV degradation up to 92.56% after 360 min.