One-step fabrication of Fe2O3/Mn2O3 nanocomposite for rapid photodegradation of organic dyes at neutral pH

Abstract In this study, a novel coral-like Fe2O3/Mn2O3 nanocomposite (FMNC) was synthesized by a one-step surfactant-mediated co-precipitation method. The application of this material was demonstrated for the degradation of organic dyes. The crystallographic analysis of FMNC confirmed the presence of α-Fe2O3 and α-Mn2O3 with no impurity of MnFe2O4. The photocatalyst showed strong absorbance in the UV and Visible range with a low bandgap energy of 1.11 eV. In the optimized experimental conditions (0.5 g L−1 photocatalyst, 10 mg L−1 MB concentration, and 5 mmol L−1 H2O2), the FMNC photocatalyst showed 80–97% degradation of organic dyes within 75 s using low power UV-C irradiation. Moreover, scavenger studies confirmed the involvement of OH radicals and holes as the main active species responsible for the dye degradation process. The photocatalytic degradation process was insignificantly affected by the presence of inorganic anions. The photocatalyst showed a ~ 5% loss of performance after seven photocatalytic cycles. This study concluded that UV/H2O2/FMNC system is a fast, efficient, and economical approach for remediation of dye-contaminated wastewater.