Photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue by ZnO seed layers and 1D nanorods

In the present work, the photocatalytic activity of ZnO seed layers and 1D nanorods are studied on Methylene Blue (MB) dye. ZnO thin films deposited on glass substrates by Spray Pyrolysis technique are used as the seed layers to grow 1D nanorods by Aqueous Chemical Growth (ACG) method for 10 h. The structural properties are studied by XRD measurements. Scanning Electron Micrographs confirmed the growth of 1D nanorods. The photoluminescence spectra showed a broad emission in the visible region corresponding to the structural defects. The photocatalytic experiment was conducted for 4 h in sunlight by dipping the seed layer and seed layer with 1D nanorods in a petridishes containing the dye. The dye degradation was 69 % and 80 % for seed layers and 1D nanorods respectively. The nanorods show better activity due to its higher surface area compared to the seed layer, and the increased defect concentration.