Sol-gel synthesis and characterization of neodymium orthoferrite for disposing oily wastewater

Abstract

The aim of this study was to design and characterize a NdFeO3-based photocatalyst prepared by sol-gel method for treatment of oily wastewater. Different characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), UV–vis spectrophometer were used to elucidate the structure, morphology, surface functional groups, and optical absorption properties of the prepared NdFeO3 photocatalyst. The photo-Fenton degradation performance of the as-prepared NdFeO3 photocatalyst was investigated by degrading oily-containing wastewater under visible light irradiation. The NdFeO3 photocatalyst manifests the high chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency of 97.6 % for 120 min reaction) thanks to its narrow band gap energy and high crystalline degree.