Synthesis and characterization of reduced-graphene oxide/TiO2/Zeolite-4A: A bifunctional nanocomposite for abatement of methylene blue

A bifunctional nanocomposite photocatalyst that possesses high photocatalytic activity as well as enhanced adsorption capability was developed. The adsorption component, graphene oxide was synthesized following an improved oxidation method from graphite flakes; while the photoactive component, TiO2 was synthesized by the polymerizable sol–gel route. The as-synthesized graphene oxide was partially photo-reduced, and got anchored as reduced graphene oxide onto TiO2. The materials have been thoroughly characterized with XRD, FT-IR, Raman spectroscopy, TGA, SEM and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy techniques. This reduced-graphene oxide/TiO2 was dispersed over the Zeolite-4A and this nanocomposite hybrid system exhibited remarkable adsorption capability as well as high photocatalytic degradation efficiency for methylene blue. [Display omitted] •Partially photoreduced GO anchored onto TiO2/Zeolite-4A is synthesized.•This hybrid nanocomposite serves as a bifunctional catalyst.•Remarkable enhancement of adsorption capability of RGO/TiO2/Zeolite-4A towards MB•Efficient photodegradation of MB using RGO/TiO2/Zeolite-4A