Gold nanoparticles anchored amine-functionalized nickel metal–organic framework composite for efficient solar light-assisted degradation of rose bengal dye and Cr(VI) reduction

In this report, the photodegradation of rose bengal dye (RB) and reduction of Cr(VI) was performed under solar light using a composite composed of amine-functionalized nickel metal–organic framework (Ni-MOF) and gold (Au). The morphological study revealed that the Ni-MOF surface was embellished with Au nanoparticles that had a mean size of less than 10 nm. The composite photocatalyst exhibited a reduction efficiency of 82% for Cr(VI) and degradation of 88% for RB dye. An experiment investigating radical scavenging confirmed that the production of superoxide radicals was the primary cause of the degradation of RB. The cyclic stability test revealed that the degrading efficiency of RB did not see a significant decline after seven consecutive cycles. The results highlight the favorable photocatalytic characteristics of the Ni-MOF/Au composite, indicating its potential use in environmental remediation.