Photocatalytic degradation of crystal violet using yttrium and copper co-doped nickel aluminate

Spinels are known for their enhanced photocatalytic activity which demonstrates as one of the promising solutions for the conversion of harmful organic dyes into simpler, less harmful molecules like CO₂ and H₂O. In this study, spinel nickel aluminate, copper-doped nickel aluminate, and yttrium, copper co-doped nickel aluminate were synthesized using the sol-gel process with citric acid as a capping agent. The synthesized compounds were characterized by various techniques, including XRD, UV-DRS, XPS, and SEM-EDAX, and tested for their photocatalytic activity against the crystal violet dye under UV light. The results showed a degradation of 97.40% within 120 min under UV light using yttrium-doped nickel aluminate and 96.32% degradation in 90 min using copper and yttrium co-doped nickel aluminate. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of yttrium-doped and yttrium-copper co-doped nickel aluminate compared to its undoped counterpart (83.54% in 120 min) highlights the beneficial impact of yttrium and copper incorporation on the material's performance.