Environmentally Sustainable Fabrication of Cu1.94S-rGO Composite for Dual Environmental Application: Visible-Light-Active Photocatalyst and Room-Temperature Phenol Sensor

In the present study a novel Cu1.94S-rGO (rGO = reduced graphene oxide) composite is synthesized in an ecofriendly way and its application as photocatalyst and phenol sensor is explored. The extensive microscopic and spectroscopic characterization tools were used to confirm the structures and chemical vicinity of synthesized djurleite nanocomposite. This highly permeable mesoporous composite shows a direct band gap of 2.17 eV, which confers its semiconducting properties. Wet hydrogen peroxide catalytic oxidation method of photocatalysis was adopted here for the photodegradation of model cationic and anionic dyes, which result in 90.76% and 79.44% removal efficiencies, respectively, with the fixed catalyst dose and minimum additive of 0.55 mM hydrogen peroxide dose. The removal efficiency was improved significantly by the addition of a higher amount of hydrogen peroxide. Significant reusability is also observed here in both kinds of dye molecules and is contingent on its potential applicability. It also exhibits a good response toward phenol in the range of 0.2–1.4 μM concentration by modified Cu1.94S-rGO/GCE (GCE = glassy carbon electrode). The sensing ability of such composites at a different scan rate, different pH, and with different types of molecules is also studied. The spiking recovery process inferred that a modified electrode can be a really useful device for detection and quantification of phenol in a real sample also. Surely this study opens up new possibilities for the application of inorganic semiconductor materials in the near future.