Rational design of Zn4O(BDC)3 metal organic framework incorporated with NiCr2O4 nanoparticles: An affordable photocatalyst for the degradation of hazardous dyes

In this work, a simple hydrothermal approach was used to make Zn4O(BDC)3-NiCr2O4 nanocomposite. The structural, morphological and photophysical properties of the prepared samples were used to evaluate various characterization approaches. The Zn4O(BDC)3-NiCr2O4 nanocomposite appears to have a large surface area and increased absorption of visible light. When compared to pure Zn4O(BDC)3 and NiCr2O4, the Zn4O(BDC)3-NiCr2O4 nanocomposite displayed more effective catalytic activity for degradation of methyl orange (MO) and Rhodamine (Rh B) dye from aqueous solution when exposed to visible light. The Zn₄O(BDC)₃-NiCr₂O₄ nanocomposite achieved degradation efficiencies of 93.75 % and 89.91 % for MO and Rh B dyes, respectively, after 210 and 150 minutes of visible light irradiation. The degradation rate for MO was 0.016 min⁻¹, which is approximately 6.66 times and 3.13 times higher than that of pure Zn₄O(BDC)₃ or NiCr₂O₄ nanoparticles, respectively. In addition, the Zn4O(BDC)3-NiCr2O4 nanocomposite showed high structural stability after the degradation test, and most of its photocatalytic activity was retained even after the recycling examination. Moreover, the radical trapping experiments demonstrated that the major active species including superoxide and hydroxyl radicals played main roles in the photocatalytic process. Additionally, the photocatalytic mechanism of Zn4O(BDC)3-NiCr2O4 nanocomposite has been examined, and a more plausible path of hazardous dye degradation has been provided. •Zn4O(BDC)3 -NiCr2O4 nanocomposite exhibit excellent removal of organic dyes.•It appears to have a large surface area and increased absorption of visible light•A stable and durable photocatalyst allows for continuous use over multiple cycles.