Effect of various amounts of graphene oxide on the degradation characteristics of the ZnSe/graphene nanocomposites

In this work, the graphene oxide (GO) sheets were synthesized by modified Hummers and Offeman's method. The GO was mixed with ZnSe that was prepared using various amounts of N2H4 at a ratio of (0.25-2):1 to form precursors. The ZnSe/graphene nanocomposites were synthesized under hydrothermal conditions (180 degrees C; 12 h) from the previous precursor. Obtained ZnSe/graphene photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflection spectroscopy, transmission electron microscope, scanning electron microscope, Raman spectra and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Photocatalytic activity under visible light is evaluated in methylene blue (MB) dye degradation reaction in aqueous phase. The results show that the formation of ZnSe/graphene nanocomposite is depend on ratio of the addition of GO to the amount of ZnSe-N2H4. The optimum degradation efficiency of the ZnSe/graphene nanocomposites on MB increases with increasing the ratio of the addition of GO to the amount of ZnSe-N2H4. When the amount of N2H4 increased from 5 ml to 7 ml, the ratio of the addition of GO to the amount of ZnSe-N2H4 increased from 1 to 1.25. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.