Catalytic Performance of Magnesium Oxide Nanoparticles and MgO/Sodium Alginate Nanocomposite: A Sustainable Approach for Wastewater Treatment

The synthesis of magnesium oxide/sodium alginate (MgO/SA) nanocomposite synthesized via in-situ chemical oxidative polymerization using calcium chloride and MgO nanoparticles (MgO NPs) was reported in this study, while MgO NPs were synthesized by co-precipitation method. XRD confirmed the high crystallinity and cubic structure of MgO, while the amorphous nature of MgO/SA was attributed to the presence of polymer (SA) in it. Flake-like morphology of MgO and spherical morphology of MgO/SA was revealed through SEM and the presence of Mg and O elements was confirmed by EDX analysis. Key functional groups at 862 and 1604 cm- 1 were identified using FTIR, while XPS analyzed surface atomic concentrations and chemical states. The catalytic activity of MgO and MgO/SA in dye reduction such as methyl blue (MB), methyl red (MR), methyl orange (MO), Eri chrome black T (EBT) rhodamine B (Rh-B) and eosin yellow (EY) is also studied was evaluated, with the highest efficiency observed for Rhodamine B (Kapp= 0.2043 cm- 1, 94% reduction in 14 min and half-life of 4 min) using MgO/SA. The study aligns with the sustainable development goal SDG 6 by offering an eco-friendly approach to wastewater treatment through efficient dye removal.