Silica-Amorphous Carbon Nanotube Hybrid Induced Removal of Rhodamine B from Water

The present study reports the synthesis of amorphous carbon nanotube-Silica (a-CNT-SiO2) hybrids by a simple cost friendly method. The as synthesized samples were characterized by instruments like XRD, FESEM, FTIR spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The XRD spectra confirm the proper phase formation of the sample, whereas the FESEM micrographs reveal that the samples have been developed in cluster form. FTIR spectra reveal that there are several absorption peaks present these are mainly assigned to the Si-Si, Si-O, Si-H, C-C, C = C, C = O, C-Hn or OH bonds. Raman spectra of the pure and hybrid samples have also been studied in detail. From the application point of view, both the pure and hybrid samples have shown good efficacy in removing dyes like rhodamine B with an efficiency of over 90% within just 45 min. Kinetic studies confirmed that the reaction mostly followed pseudo first order mechanism.