In-situ fabrication of ternary (3D/2D/2D) prism‒like structures with dramatically enhancement on degradation of profenofos: A systemic study

Abstract In the present work, a novel (3D/2D/2D) prism-like ZGO‒MOF hybrid nanocomposite was successfully prepared via two-pot hydro-thermal process and employed as a catalyst for the degradation of organic persistent pesticide such as profenofos (PF). Due to more toxicity, the removal of such organic compounds are necessary in environmental aspects. The prepared nanocomposites were characterized and well explained using FT‒IR, XRD, UV‒DRS, SEM‒EDX, TEM, TGA‒DTA, PL and BET surface area measurements. The OH and O2− radicals was benign effective oxidative species involved in the ZGO‒MOF system for the mineralization of organic pollutants. Besides, ZGO‒MOF showed excellent photo-stability over five repetitive runs for the removal of organic pesticides with minimal drop on catalytic activity. Eventually, the intended photocatalytic mechanisms and degradation pathways of PF are readily determined in detail based on experimental results. The catalyst achieves excellent efficiency of about 94 %. Possible PQ oxidative pathways and their reaction intermediates were observed by LC–MS. Therefore, the pollutant which primarily oxidize into ring-ruptured components into innocuous products like H2O, CO2 and a few in-organic salts. With the concern of its environmental friendly, low‒cost, and benign simple synthesis, ZGO‒MOF was expected to be a promising choice for applications in wastewater management.