Ag/AgCl-GO: A composite for degradation of Rhodamine B in dye wastewater

Ag/AgCl-GO composite was fabricated by deposition–precipitation method and photoplasmic reduction method at room temperature. The resulting products were characterized by XRD, XPS, SEM, TEM, Zeta potential and UV–Vis DRS. The results indicated that the samples were composed of Ag, AgCl and graphene oxide (GO). During the photoreduction, the crystallinity of Ag⁰ particles gradually increased with prolonging the time of UV irradiation, then remained stable after 90 min. The addition of GO had little effect on the crystal structure of Ag/AgCl, however, this reduced the particle size and enhances the dispersibility of the composite. After 100 min of visible light irradiation, the degradation efficiency of rhodamine B (RhB) reached 98.43%. Therefore, the Ag/AgCl-GO photocatalyst exhibited significant photocatalytic activity during the degradation of RhB under visible light.