Investigation of thermal, structural, morphological and photocatalytic properties of CuxCo1-xFe2O4 (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) nanoparticles embedded in SiO2 matrix

In the present work, Cu2+ substituted Co ferrite (CuxCo1-xFe2O4, x = 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75 and 1.00) nanoparticles embedded in SiO2 matrix were synthesized via a modified sol-gel method followed by high temperature annealing. The reaction progress was investigated by thermal analysis coupled with mass spectrometry and Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), while the formation of CuxCo1-xFe2O4/SiO2 nanocomposites (NCs) and of secondary phases as a result of the variation of Cu/Co molar ratios were investigated by powder X-ray diffraction analysis (PXRD) and FT-IR. The particle size and shape were studied by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). By varying the Cu/Co molar ratios, the dependence of phase specific parameters (crystallite size, cell parameter, density, porosity) and the evolution of particle shape and size at 1000 degrees C were investigated by TEM. The photocatalytic activity of the NCs by increasing the Cu content was evaluated through the degradation of Rhodamine B under UV-Vis light irradiation.