Photocatalytic properties of cubi2o4 prepared by the co-precipitation method: degradation of rose bengal and possible reaction mechanism under visible light irradiation

Monoclinic CuBi2O4 was synthesized by Co-precipitation method at 300 ºC. Crystallographic and morphological characterizations of prepared sample has been carried out using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope. The results indicate that the sample prepared at 300 ºC has the structure of monoclinic CuBi2O4 with average crystallite size less than hundred nanometer. The UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectra show that the sample has good absorption ability in the wavelength range of 300–800 nm. The results of photocatalytic experiments show that the photocatalyst exhibit excellent photocatalytic activity for Rose Bengal (RB) dye solution under visible light irradiation. Rose Bengal(RB) dye was successfully photodegraded using visible light active monoclinic CuBi2O4 as photocatalyst. 10 ppm of Rose Bengal(RB) dye was photodegraded using 0.1 g of CuBi2O4 under irradiation for 2 hours. The prepared CuBi2O4 photocatalyst was characterized by XRD,UV-DRS,SEM-EDX and FT-IR. Photoluminescence studies confirmed the formation of •OH free radicals due to irradiation.