Development
of coupled semiconductor oxides makes a significant
advancement in catalytic functional materials. In this article, we
report the preparation of nanobundle-shaped BiVO4–ZnO
photocatalyst by a simple hydrothermal process followed by thermal
decomposition. The photocatalyst was characterized by X-ray powder
diffraction (XRD), high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM),
field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy-dispersive
spectroscopy (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution
transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy
(XPS), photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL), and UV–vis diffuse
reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The XRD pattern confirmed formation
of monoclinic scheelite BiVO4 and the hexagonal wurtzite
structure of ZnO. HR-SEM images show nanobundle-like structure, and
the size of the nanospheres ranges from 20 to 40 nm. BiVO4–ZnO has increased absorption in the UV and visible region
when compared to ZnO. The catalytic activity of BiVO4–ZnO
was evaluated by the photodegradation of Acid Violet 7 (AV 7), Evens
Blue (EB), and Reactive Red 120 (RR 120). The results revealed that
the photocatalytic activity of BiVO4–ZnO was much
higher than that of ZnO, BiVO4, and TiO2–P25
under natural sunlight. BiVO4–ZnO is more advantageous
than ZnO and BiVO4 in the degradation of AV 7, EB, and
RR 120 because it has maximum efficiency at neutral pH 7. BiVO4–ZnO was found to be stable and reusable without appreciable
loss of catalytic activity up to four consecutive cycles. The self-cleaning
property of BiVO4–ZnO has been evaluated using contact
angle measurements. Our results provide some new insights on the performance
of solar active photocatalysts on environmental remediation.
Heterostructrued Pr6O11–ZnO prepared by a simple hydrothermal process, shows enhanced solar photocatalytic activity for azo dye degradation, hydrophobicity and photoconductivity.
In this article we report the fabrication of 3 wt% Dy 2 WO 6 doped ZnO via a template-free hydrothermal process and its photocatalytic activity against azo dyes Rhodamine-B (Rh-B) and Trypan Blue (TB) in solar light irradiation.The as prepared Dy 2 WO 6 doped ZnO was characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), high resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM) field emission transmission electron microscopy (FE-TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), diffused reflectance (DRS) and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The results suggested that rare earth tungstate doping, with Dy 2 WO 6 , on ZnO has a great influence on the photocatalytic activity. Dy 2 WO 6 -ZnO possesses high reusability without appreciable loss of catalytic activity up to four runs and exhibits higher electrocatalytic activity than the prepared ZnO for methanol electrooxidation in alkaline medium, revealing its promising potential as the anode catalyst in direct methanol fuel cells. Hydrophobicity of ZnO increases on doping with Dy 2 WO 6 .
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.