Synthesis and performance evaluation of biochar-supported ZTO nanocatalyst for photodegradation of Rhodamine B in water

In this study, rosehip seeds were activated as biochar (BC) in a tube furnace. Then, BC powder was mixed with hydrothermally synthesized zinc stannate (Zn2SnO4, ZTO) nanoparticles and the resulting mixture was activated by a co-calcination method to fabricate a mesoporous ZTO/BC nanocomposite. The dye removal performance samples were evaluated by measuring the photodegradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under UV light irradiation. The effects of the catalyst type, dosage of the catalyst, and pH of the aqueous solution were examined to show the nanocomposite’s compatibility. It was found that ZTO/BC nanocomposite containing 15wt