Manganese doped Co3O4/rGO nanocomposite: synthesis, characterisation and visible light irradiated photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue studies

Visible light active, highly stable, nontoxic, and efficient photocatalysts based on 1 %, 3 %, and 5 % Mn@Co3O4 were synthesized and functionalized with reduced graphene oxide. The X-rays diffraction (XRD) spectroscopy and FT-IR spectroscopy were employed for structural and functional group studies. Under visible light irradiation, photocatalytic activities of 1 %, 3 %, and 5 % Mn@Co3O4/rGO nanocomposites were studied for the degradation of organic pollutant methylene blue. Almost 85.4 %, 90.2 %, and 93.4 % degradation of methylene blue were observed after 80 min with 1 % Mn@Co3O4/rGO, 3 % Mn@Co3O4/rGO, and 5 % Mn@Co3O4/rGO respectively. The prepared nanocomposites followed pseudo-first-order kinetic studies. Among all samples, the 5 % Mn@Co3O4/rGO showed maximum degradation of 93.4 % in 80 min. Moreover, 5 % Mn@Co3O4/rGO nanocomposite maintained its excellent dye degradation ability even after three cycles.