SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION AND PHOTOCATALYTIC APPLICATIONS OF p(Aac) MICROGELS AND ITS COMPOSITES OF Ni DOPED ZnO NANORODS

ZnO nanorods and Ni doped ZnO nanorods with various concentration of nickel 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25% were prepared by co-precipitation method. By added zinc acetate dehydrate and nickel nitrate as zinc and nickel precursor in presence of Ammonia solution. Microgels of p(AAc) and its composites of Ni doped ZnO nanorods were synthesized by inverse phase polymerization method under N2 gas atmosphere. Optical structure and morphology of Ni doped ZnO nanorods and its composite with p(AAc) were determined by XRD, TEM, SEM, FTIR and UV-Visible spectrometer. The photocatalytic activity of the samples was testified by using Tungsten lamp of 500 W via photo-degradation of methylene blue (MB) as a standard dye. It was observed that the composite of p(AAc) microgels with Ni doped ZnO nanorods show much enhanced photocatalytic performance as compared to any other individual particle acting as alone. The enhanced photocatalytic activity is due to enhanced surface area, surface roughness and decreasing band gap.