Preparation of Magnetic Silica Nanoparticle-Supported Iron Tetra-Carboxyl Phthalocyanine Catalyst and Its Photocatalytic Properties

Abstract

Iron tetra-carboxyl phthalocyanine (TCFePc) was covalently immobilized to the surface of core-shell magnetite silica nanoparticles (NPs) as facilely separated supported catalyst, namely P-M SiO2 NPs, for catalyzing the degradation of organic pollutants in aqueous solution under visible light irradiation. X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID), and ultraviolet visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy were used to characterize the sample. The photocatalytic activity of P-M SiO2 NPs was determined using rhodamine B (RhB) and methyl orange (MO) as the objective decomposition substances. The results revealed that the novel supported catalyst exhibited good catalytic activity over a wide pH range, and the degradation rate of RhB and MO is up to 90% during 120 min of reaction. Moreover, it is noteworthy that the catalyst can be easily separated using an external magnetic field and employed directly for the next round of reaction.State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science (Xiamen University) [MEL0707