Green sol-gel auto-combustion synthesis of CeO₂/MnCr₂O₄ nanocomposite using banana juice and its potential application for enhanced degradation of methyl orange under visible light

Despite the introduction of different semiconductor photocatalysts for removing a variety of colors and contaminants, the development of novel multi-component substances with strong light-harvesting capacity remains a challenge. The purpose of this paper is to rationally design binary CeO₂/MnCr₂O₄ heterostructure nanocomposites through the green sol-gel self-combustion route and use them as visible light-active nano-photocatalysts in wastewater treatment. Several physicochemical instruments, including powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDS), and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), were used to examine the effects of banana juice volume on crystal structure, purity, and shape of as-formed specimens. Optical results demonstrate that binary CeO₂/MnCr₂O₄ nanocomposites have high photocatalytic activity due to their 2.9 eV band gap. As a result of using 10 mL of banana juice, the best performing product removed almost 84 % and 93 % of methyl orange (MO) in 90 minutes and 120 minutes, respectively, under visible and UV light. CeO₂/MnCr₂O₄ nanocomposite is a promising candidate for photocatalysis according to these findings.