Boosting the performance of LaCoO₃/MoS₂ perovskite interface for sustainable decontaminants under visible...

The novel composite LaCoO₃/MoS₂ hybrid nanostructure was synthesized via a combination of sol-gel, hydrothermal, and ultrasonication methods. Alizarin Red S (ARS) and Rhodamine B (RhB) were employed as a model pollutant, to assess the photodegradation efficiency of synthesized catalysts. The effect of MoS₂ (2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, and 10%) on LaCoO₃ (LCO) and its photocatalytic performance was studied. The properties of synthesized catalysts were assessed using various material characterization techniques. The photocatalytic dye degradation of ARS and RhB was investigated under visible light. Among the synthesized catalyst LM-5% composite (LaCoO₃ with 5% MoS₂) is determined to be the best photocatalyst as it degrades 96 % (ARS) and 90 % (RhB) in 40 min and 80 min, respectively. The photocatalyst is stable even after multiple runs and exhibits negligible loss in degradation efficiency during the cyclic test. Trapping experiments reveal the significance of superoxide anion and hydroxyl radicals against the photodegradation of ARS and RhB. The kinetics of photodegradation of ARS and RhB by LM-5% is found to be 5.70 × 10^-2 and 2.25 × 10^-2 min^-1, respectively. Herein, we demonstrated a catalyst possessing excellent photodegradation activity which may ignite the possibilities of using efficient photocatalysts for environmental remediation.