Electronic Structure of Visible Light-Driven Photocatalyst δ-Bi₁₁VO₁₉ Nanoparticles Synthesized by Thermal Plasma

Abstract

Size confinement for tailoring of electronic structures can in principle be explored for enhancement of photocatalytic properties. In the present work, vanadium-doped bismuth oxide nanoparticles, with an average particle size of 36 nm, are synthesized for the first time, using the thermal plasma method, in large scale with high yield to explore for photocatalytic applications. The electronic and crystallographic structures of the sample are studied experimentally and theoretically. Systematic investigations of the electronic structure of the fluorite type cubic phase of Bi 11 VO 19 nanoparticles are reported for the first time. Enhancement is observed in the photocatalytic activity as compared to other delta phases of bismuth vanadate. The valence band is found to comprise mainly of O 2p states, whereas the conduction band arises from V 3d states giving rise to a band gap value of 2.26 eV. Absence of excess O in δ-Bi 2 O 3 results in shrinking of the band gap because of O 2p, Bi 6s and 6p states from the surrounding atoms at doping sites. Bi 11 VO 19 nanoparticles show an efficient visible light absorption and exhibit excellent photodegradation properties of methylene blue solution under visible light irradiation.

BiVO4–Deposited MIL–101–NH2 for Efficient Photocatalytic Elimination of Cr(VI)

“…As shown in Figure S5 , the peak position of υ as (V–O) shifted towards the lower wavelength region with MIL–101–NH 2 . This further supports that the V–O bond length of BiVO 4 increased corresponding to the empirical relation below [ 33 ]: υ = 21349·e −1.9176·R where υ is the location of the stretching mode and R is related to the length of the bond.…”

Construction of MIL-125-NH2@BiVO4 Composites for Efficient Photocatalytic Dye Degradation

“…42 Besides, the V−O bond length was calculated to be 1.69 Å according to the empirical expression υ = 21,349e −1.9176R , wherein υ and R are the peak positions of the group's stretching mode and the bond length, respectively. 43 The peak of the composite was consistent with two monomer materials, supporting the successful complexation of BV and TN.…”

Study of the oxidation process of bismuth nanoparticles using NaClO

“…This vacancy order is believed to be due to different dopant ratios, ion polarizabilities, or a combination of both [15]. The main methods reported to synthesize or dope δ-Bi 2 O 3 are electrodeposition, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), magnetron sputtering, sol gel, and hydrothermal photodeposition, which have been used mainly to synthesize thin films and thermal plasma for the synthesis of V-doped δ-Bi 2 O 3 nanoparticles [18].…”