Piezocatalytic activity of CaO–Bi2O3–B2O3 glass-ceramics under ultrasonic vibrations

Abstract

Transparent glass-ceramics of CaO–Bi2O3–B2O3 (CBBO) were fabricated using the conventional melt quench technique. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy were employed to confirm the phase of the prepared samples. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used to verify that the material was, indeed, glassy. The CBBO glass samples were subjected to heat treatment at 540 °C for 30 min and 1 h based on their crystallization temperature obtained from DSC analysis. This study focused on the piezocatalytic behavior of CBBO glass-ceramic samples. Piezocatalysis experiments were conducted on the fabricated glass-ceramic samples, and it was discovered that the samples heat-treated for 30 min (HT30m) at 540 °C showed maximum dye degradation of 61% under 240 min of ultrasonication. Experiments were repeated multiple times to confirm their reliability. Additionally, a phytotoxicity assessment was performed on the degraded dye using vigna radiata seeds. The antibacterial properties of the CBBO glass-ceramic samples were also investigated via piezocatalysis. It was discovered that the HT30m CBBO glass-ceramic sample removes 98% of Escherichia coli and 99% of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria within 120 min of ultrasonication.