In
this contribution, a single pot approach was employed to synthesize
nanoscale BiVO4/BiOX/Pd, where the halogen was varied over
Cl, Br, and I. These materials were used to study the effect of the
halide identity in the BiOX nanoplate component for its ability to
modulate/maximize the photocatalytic properties of the materials.
Once the nanomaterials were fully characterized via a suite of approaches, their reactivity for the degradation of rhodamine
B, a model pollutant, was examined. All of the materials demonstrated
high photocatalytic rates, reaching completion in <10 min in most
cases. The results demonstrated that the BiVO4/BiOCl/Pd
and BiVO4/BiOBr/Pd have significantly enhanced reactivity
compared to the BiVO4/BiOI/Pd structures. Further studies
using the BiVO4/BiOBr/Pd in the degradation of rhodamine
B in natural water samples indicated that the materials retained their
reactivity, demonstrating their potential use in environmental systems.
Herein we report an ultrasonic-and photobased synthetic approach for the production of size-selective SrTiO 3 nanomaterials that are surface-decorated with Pd nanoparticle cocatalysts for application as photocatalysts for organic dye degradation. Control over the final nanoparticle size was achieved through selection of both reagent concentrations and stoichiometries, allowing for the ability to generate structures with sizes between 50 and 155 nm. Pd nanoparticles were subsequently photochemically deposited onto the surface of the oxide materials to serve as cocatalysts for enhanced reactivity. The materials were fully characterized and then examined for their photocatalytic reactivity, where their overall catalytic properties were controlled by three factors: (i) composition, (ii) size, and (iii) particle surface charge. These studies demonstrate important information that correlates synthetic conditions to final material properties, providing approaches to generate materials with optimal reactivity. Such effects could likely be translated to additional systems for applications beyond photocatalysis, such as energy harvesting, plasmonics, sensing, etc.
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