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Hydrothermal synthesis, characterization of visible‐light‐driven α‐ Bi 2 O 3 enhanced by Pr 3+ doping
Author(s) -
Wu Shuxing,
Fang Jianzhang,
Xu Weicheng,
Cen Chaoping
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
journal of chemical technology and biotechnology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.64
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1097-4660
pISSN - 0268-2575
DOI - 10.1002/jctb.4034
Subject(s) - photocatalysis , rhodamine b , doping , hydrothermal circulation , calcination , visible spectrum , catalysis , materials science , hydrothermal synthesis , water splitting , nuclear chemistry , nanotechnology , photochemistry , chemistry , chemical engineering , optoelectronics , organic chemistry , engineering
Background Water pollution is a serious problem for the entire world. Photocatalysis is an accepted way to decontaminate water. As the key factor influencing photocatalysis, an environmentally friendly photocatalyst should possess good visible‐light‐response. Additionally, an efficient catalyst should have good separation of e ‐ /h + pairs. On account of the special f electron orbital structure, the ions of rare earths exhibit the ability to accelerate the abruption of photogenerated e ‐ /h + pairs. In this work, visible‐light‐driven α‐ Bi 2 O 3 enhanced using Pr 3+ doping was prepared by hydrothermal synthesis . Results The as‐prepared catalysts calcined at 500 °C exhibited only the characteristic peaks of Bi 2 O 3 and presented irregular plate‐like structures. The separation efficiency for electron–hole was enhanced when α‐ Bi 2 O 3 was doped with Pr. The photocatalytic activities, which were evaluated by degradation of Rhodamine B ( RhB ) and 2,4‐dichlorophenol (2,4‐ DCP ) under visible light irradiation, was enhanced significantly by doping Pr into α‐ Bi 2 O 3 . Conclusion Doping α‐ Bi 2 O 3 with Pr significantly enhanced the photocatalytic activity. The optimum percentage of doped pr was 3.0 mol %. · OH radicals were the dominant photooxidant. This study demonstrates an efficient pathway to improve the photocatalytic performance of α‐ Bi 2 O 3 . © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry