Experimental design and data on the adsorption and photocatalytic properties of boron nitride/cadmium aluminate composite for Cr(VI) and cefoxitin sodium antibiotic

This article reports the experimental data on the adsorption and photocatalytic degradation-reduction properties of pure boron nitride (BN), cadmium aluminate (CdAl2O4) and boron nitride/cadmium aluminate (BN/CdAl2O4) composite for the hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) and cefoxitin sodium (CFT) in aqueous solution under the ultraviolet (UV) and visible light irradiation. This work evaluates the adsorption and photocatalytic efficiency of the 0.2g BN coupled with the CdAl2O4 in BN-0.2/CdAl2O4 composite for Cr(VI) and CFT. The experiments were performed by mixing the 0.025 material with 50 mL solution of known concentration (15 mg/L) at pH 3 for Cr(VI) and pH 7 for CFT. The obtained data can be valuable to select the proper light source (UV or visible) and pollutant to investigate the application of BN-0.2/CdAl2O4 composite. Moreover, presented data can help identify the equilibrium time for the adsorption process and to recognize the best process for the removal of the pollutants from wastewaters. A comparison of the obtained data with previously reported works has been conducted for the understanding of the adsorption and photocatalysis of Cr(VI) and CFT using various materials under the different experimental conditions.


a b s t r a c t
This article reports the experimental data on the adsorption and photocatalytic degradation-reduction properties of pure boron nitride (BN), cadmium aluminate (CdAl 2 O 4 ) and boron nitride/ cadmium aluminate (BN/CdAl 2 O 4 ) composite for the hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) and cefoxitin sodium (CFT) in aqueous solution under the ultraviolet (UV) and visible light irradiation. This work evaluates the adsorption and photocatalytic efficiency of the 0.2g BN coupled with the CdAl 2 O 4 in BN-0.2/CdAl 2 O 4 composite for Cr(VI) and CFT. The experiments were performed by mixing the 0.025 material with 50 mL solution of known concentration (15 mg/L) at pH 3 for Cr(VI) and pH 7 for CFT. The obtained data can be valuable to select the proper light source (UV or visible) and pollutant to investigate the application of BN-0.2/CdAl 2 O 4 composite. Moreover, presented data can help identify the equilibrium time for the adsorption process and to recognize the best process for the removal of the pollutants from wastewaters. A comparison of the obtained data with previously reported works has been conducted for the understanding of the adsorption and photocatalysis of Cr(VI) and CFT using various materials under the different experimental conditions. © 2019 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons. org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Data description
The incorporation of the BN with CdAl 2 O 4 enhanced the photocatalytic of the synthesized BN-0.2/ CdAl 2 O 4 composite. However, BN-0.2/CdAl 2 O 4 composite is not a very efficient catalyst in visible light. Data reported in this article is related to the article "Photocatalytic degradation of cefoxitin sodium antibiotic using novel BN/CdAl 2 O 4 composite" [1]. This article reports why we selected the CFT and UV light source over the Cr(VI) and visible light for the study in Ref. [1]. A schematic diagram Specification Table   Subject Environmental science, materials science Specific subject area Wastewater purification, adsorption, photocatalysis, Type of data Tables, Figures How data were acquired The concentration of the Cr(VI) before and after the adsorption and photocatalysis was analysed by HACH ChromaVer® 3 chromium reagent powder pillows. The concentration of the CFT before and after the adsorption and photocatalysis was analysed by UV evisible spectrophotometer. Diffuse reflectance spectra of the materials were recorded on Jasco-V-570 spectrophotometer, Japan. Data format Raw Parameters for data collection The experimental data were obtained to select the efficient light source for the photocatalytic properties measurement of the synthesized materials. The effect of time on Cr(VI) and CFT removal was studied in the dark (adsorption) and under UV and visible light irradiation (light intensity -108 W) In addition, the selectively of the materials was evaluated for Cr(VI) and CFT degradation.

Description of data collection
The data related to adsorption and photocatalysis was collected by taking the fixed amount of the sample from the solution after a certain time interval. The adsorption was performed between 0 and 120 min.  Fig. 4. Raw data related to this articles mentioned in supplementary file.
A comparison of the experimental conditions, adsorption, and photocatalytic efficiency of the various materials reported previously for the removal of the CFT and Cr(VI) are summarized in Table 2 and Table 3.

Materials
The model pollutant cefoxitin sodium (CFT) and potassium dichromate (salt for Cr(VI)) was supplied by Zhzhou Zhijun chemicals and BDH chemical, England. Otto chemical Ltd, India supplied boron nitride sheets. Cadmium nitrate and aluminum nitrate salts were received from BDH chemical Ltd. All the chemicals were used without further purifications. A freshly prepared solution was used for the adsorption and photocatalysis experiments by mixing the fixed amount of the salt in deionized water.

Synthesis and characterization
The synthesis of the CdAl 2 O 4 and a series of BN/CdAl 2 O 4 composites was performed in a 150 mL Teflon lined hydrothermal reactor at 160 C. A detailed synthesis procedure and characterization of the BN, CdAl 2 O 4 , and BN/CdAl 2 O 4 composites are reported elsewhere [1].

Adsorption and photocatalysis experiments
All the Cr(VI) and CFT adsorption and photocatalysis experiments were performed in 100 mL pyrex beaker under the dark and UV or visible light irradiation of 108 W intensity, respectively. Initially, 15 mg/L concentration solutions (500 mL) of Cr(VI) and CFT were prepared, and the pH was adjusted to 3 for Cr(VI) and pH 7 for CFT. The pH of the solution was adjusted using the 0.1 M HCl or 0.1 M NaOH solution. Thereafter, 0.025g of the material was added to the 50 mL solution of each pollutant for the adsorption studies in the dark. After 120 min in the dark, the solution was transferred into the LUZE CHEM photo-reactor for the photocatalysis experiment. Samples were collated after a fixed time interval to analyze pollutant concentration in the solution. The concentration of the Cr(VI) was analysed by the HACH-Dr6000 UVevisible spectrophotometer using HACH ChromaVer® 3 chromium reagent. The concentration of the CFT after the adsorption and photocatalysis was analyzed by UVevisible  spectrophotometer at 235 nm. The adsorption and degradation efficiency of Cr(VI) and CFT was calculated by the following equation: where, C i and C t , represent the initial and final concentration (mg/L) of the Cr(VI) or CFT at time t.

Acknowledgment
This project was funded by the Deanship of Scientific Research at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, under grant no. G: 194-155-1439. The authors, therefore, acknowledge with thanks DSR for technical and financial support.