Micro, Sono, Photocatalytic Degradation of Eosin B Using Ferric Oxide Doped with Cobalt

Eosin B dye is usually used for staining in biology; the stain is harmful if swallowed, smelt, or absorbed through skin. Some researchers have tried to remove it by adsorption, but few have attempted for a complete degradation. In this study, cobalt doped iron oxide (Co-Fe2O3) powders were used to decompose eosin B in a solution. The nanoparticles of Co-Fe2O3 were successfully prepared using microwave-hydrothermal process and characterized using different techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive analysis of X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX), and X ray diffraction analysis (XRD). The images obtained from SEM and TEM analysis revealed that grain size is homogeneous and agglomeration with average size range of about 36.97 nm. A new peak was found in EDAX analysis, which confirmed the presence of Co atom with atomic percentage dopant of nearly 5.73%. The crystal size was 50 nm, calculated by XRD analysis data. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by the degradation of eosin B under microwave, photocatalytic, soncatalytic, and sonophotocatalytic reactions. The degradation percentages were 78, 82, 83 and 87%, respectively. Thus, sonophotolysis was the optimum method to decompose the dye in solution by this method. In addition, the effects of the pH of solution were obviously examined, and it was found that low pH was a suitable pH for degradation eosin B. The photocatalyst could be reused three times without remarkable loss of its activity.