Photocatalytic Activity of Zeolite Supported Transition Metal-(Co2+ and Cr2+) Doped ZnO: Comparative Study

Transition metal ions (Co and Cr) doped ZnO nanoparticles supported on natural zeolite were synthesized using co-precipitation method. The synthesized samples were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray, Fourier-transform infrared absorption, and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The samples were further used as photocatalyst for degradation of methyl orange and methylene blue in aqueous solutions under UV light irradiation. The results showed that zeolite supported Cr-doped ZnO nanoparticles is more efficient compared with zeolite supported Co-doped ZnO nanoparticles. It is also revealed that zeolite supported samples possessed higher photocatalytic efficiency compared to bare samples.