Effect of ferroelectric polarization on piezo/photocatalysis in Ag nanoparticles loaded 0.5(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3-0.5Ba(Zr0.1Ti0.9)O3 composites towards the degradation of organic pollutants

A 0.5(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3-0.5Ba(Zr0.1Ti0.9)O-3 (BCT-BZT) ceramic was studied for photocatalysis and piezocatalysis effects using dye degradation (methylene blue, rhodamine B, and methyl orange) and bacterial (Escherichia coli) disinfection from aqueous solution. To examine the effect of ferroelectric polarization, BCT-BZT powder was poled using the corona poling technique. Same time, BCT-BZT was converted into Ag/BCT-BZT composites as Ag induced surface plasmon resonance effect during photocatalysis. Piezocatalysis performance was assessed for dyes mineralization under ultrasonication. There was a significant impact of silver nanoparticles on the photo/piezocatalysis performance of BCT-BZT. Similarly, electric poling has also played a positive role in improving the photo/piezocatalysis in view of various dye degradation. These samples also showed effective antibacterial performance.

Automated summary

The photocatalytic and piezocatalytic effects of a BCT-BZT ceramic were studied for dye degradation and bacterial disinfection. The addition of silver nanoparticles and the electric poling process were found to significantly enhance the photo/piezocatalysis performance of BCT-BZT.