Open AccessEffect of ultrasonic irradiation on the preparation of Ag 3 PO 4 particles
Author(s) -
Yang Yang,
Yang Hua,
Li Ruishan,
Wang Xiangxian
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
micro and nano letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.25
H-Index - 31
ISSN - 1750-0443
DOI - 10.1049/mnl.2015.0577
Subject(s) - materials science , rhodamine b , irradiation , photocatalysis , scanning electron microscope , ultrasonic sensor , photoluminescence , analytical chemistry (journal) , diffraction , composite material , chemical engineering , optics , chemistry , optoelectronics , chromatography , catalysis , organic chemistry , physics , nuclear physics , acoustics , engineering
Herein is investigated the effect of ultrasonic irradiation on the preparation of Ag 3 PO 4 particles based on the ion‐exchange method. X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, diffuse reflectance spectrum and photoluminescence were used to characterise the products. It is found that the application of ultrasonic irradiation at a frequency of 40 kHz leads to the production of uniform spherical particles with an average size of ∼300 nm. However, at a higher ultrasonic frequency of 60 kHz, the prepared sample presents polyhedron‐shaped particles in the size range of 6–8 μm, which are constructed from small grains with a size of several hundred nanometres. Without the aid of ultrasonic irradiation, the samples prepared at room temperature or under 50 °C water‐bath condition are composed of spherical particles and large‐sized agglomerative particles. The photocatalytic activity of Ag 3 PO 4 samples was evaluated by degrading rhodamine B (RhB) under simulated sunlight irradiation. Among these samples, the one prepared at 40 kHz exhibits the highest photocatalytic activity, where the degradation percentage of RhB reaches 96% after irradiation for 60 min.