Enhanced sonocatalytic performance of ZnTi nano-layered double hydroxide by substitution of Cu (II) cations

•CuZnTi-LDHs with different Cu2+/Zn2+ mole ratios are synthesized.•The substitution of Cu2+ improves the sonocatalytic properties of CuZnTi-LDHs.•Substitution of Cu2+ in LDH layers can narrow down the band gap energy of ZnTi-LDH.•CuZnTi-LDH (1:1) exhibits the best sonocatalytic activity.•The probable mechanism for sonocatalytic properties enhancement by Cu2+ substitution has been discussed. In this research, a series of CuZnTi-LDHs with different Cu2+/Zn2+ molar ratio were synthesized by co-precipitation method with the purpose of improving the sonocatalytic performance of ZnTi-LDH. All the LDH samples were synthesized by a facile co-precipitation process. The as-prepared LDHs were characterized by Powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), Transition electron microscopy (TEM), Brunauer-Emmelt-Teller (BET) analysis, and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) analysis. The results showed that Cu2+ substitution can significantly enhance the sonocatalytic properties of ZnTi-LDH. The Methylene blue degradation percentage over ZnTi-LDH reached 30% in 90 min, whilst this percentage reaches 71% over CuZnTi-LDH (1:1). The role of the Cu2+ incorporation on the observed enhancement in sonocatalytic performance was revealed by investigating the effect of radical scavengers on degradation efficiency and DRS spectra of ZnTi-LDH and CuZnTi-LDH (1:1). Benzoquinone (BQ), ammonium oxalate and tert-Bu lead to 22.5%, 53.5% and 74.6% decrease in degradation percentage by CuZnTi-LDH (1:1). However, the degradation efficiency showed 16.6%, 3.3% and 63.3% reduction in the presence of BQ, ammonium oxalate and tert-Bu respectively, in dye degradation by ZnTi-LDH. DRS spectra demonstrated that the band gap of the LDH decreases by Cu2+ substitution. The effect of operational parameters on sonodegradation was investigated as well. The kinetics of sonodegradation reaction obeyed the first order reaction kinetics with R2 of 0.95.