Exploring the photocatalytic performance of borosilicate glass nanocomposites modified with MnO2 for environmental safety

The advancement of highly efficient, visible-light responsive, and easily recoverable photocatalysts constitutes a great obstacle in the progress of photocatalytic technology. Hence, borosilicate glass nanocomposites modified with MnO2 with good photocatalytic activity are successfully synthesized. The structural characteristics and photocatalytic features of these glass nanocomposites are investigated. XRD patterns reveal clusters or nanocrystals (precipitated during glass creation) are embedded within the glass matrix except for the 10 mol % MnO2 sample. FTIR spectra show that the bridging oxygen of the MAFSB glass nanocomposites increases up to the sample containing 5 mol% MnO2 and decreases with further MnO2 content. In addition, both M¨ ossbauer and EXAFS/XANES spectra confirm the iron in these glass nanocomposites present in two sites; Fe3+ in a tetrahedral site, and Fe2+ in an octahedral site. Interestingly, the photocatalytic activity of these MAFSB glass nanocomposites is assessed by methylene blue (MB) dye upon visible light exposure. The 5MAFSB glass nanocomposite catalyst demonstrates a high kinetic rate of 14.21 × 10 3 min 1 and good degradation efficiency of MB dye of 80.26 % after 120 min of irradiation. The valence band and conduction band edge potential values of the MAFSB nanocomposites are calculated, helping to elucidate the mechanism of light-induced electron-hole pair generation in the MAFSB photocatalyst. The excellent reusability and stability of the 5MAFSB glass nanocomposite catalyst promote its practical application, making it a competitive candidate for extensive wastewater treatment functioning for environmental safety.