Synthesis of cerium oxide/cadmium sulfide nanocomposites using inverse microemulsion methodology for photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue

This research study demonstrates the inverse microemulsion methodology for the synthesis of cerium oxide (CeO2)/Cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanocomposites (NCs) and utilizes the engineered system for photocatalytic applications. The synthesized system was characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Ultra-violet visible spectroscopy (UV–VIS), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The acquired results justified the formation of the NCs in the reaction medium. For investigating the photocatalytic potential of the CeO2/CdS NCs, the degradation efficacy of the assembly for the model reaction of photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB) was studied. The optimization methodologies including conventional (kinetic model-based optimization) and advanced (response surface methodology (RSM)-based optimization) approaches were compared for achieving the best degradation efficacy for this particular degradation reaction. The RSM-based optimization was found to be a more effective approach for optimization of the photocatalytic reaction of MB in the presence of CeO2/CdS NCs as a photocatalyst.