THE EFFECT OF SYNTHESIS CONDITIONS OF ZnO NANO-SIZED PARTICLES BY THE CARBONATE PRECIPITATION METHOD ON THE PHOTOCATALYTIC ACTIVITY

Abstract

    The photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue in water under visible light irradiation hasbeen studied using zinc oxide (ZnO) as a catalyst prepared by carbonate precipitationmethod. The characteristics of ZnO were examined by means of TGA, XRD, SEM, UV-Vis.XRD analysis showed that ZnO powder possessed hexagonal wurtzite-type polycrystallinestructure. SEM analysis revealed the formation of ZnO nanoparticles from 50 to 90 nm. Theresults indicated the enhancement of optical absorption in visible range of ZnO nano-sizedparticles, so that it could be used as an efficient photocatalyst under visible light.