Sunlight Driven Activated Carbon Modified BiVO4 Photocatalyst for the Degradation of Rhodamine-B

Abstract

An Efficient photocatalysts for environmental remediation have generated much interest in recent times with a significant emphasis on natural light source. In the present study, activated carbon (AC) incorporated BiVO4 (BV) were synthesized using hydrothermal method and their photocatalytic properties were studied through the photodegradation of Rhodamine B (Rh-B) as a model pollutant under sunlight irradiation. The structural and morphological characteristics of BV and AC-BV nanoparticles have been ascertained, which reveals BV crystallizes in pure monoclinic phase at 120 °C, whereas the modification with AC leads to hexagonal shaped particles. In an effort to develop highly active visible light photocatalysts, small particle size, extended visible absorption in solar spectrum, narrow bandgap and increased surface area were achieved. The inclusion of AC into BV nanoparticles assists the bandgap tuning from 2.4 eV to 1.9 eV which effectively improves the visible light activity of BiVO4. The AC-BV nanoparticles possess mesoporous structure with high surface area of 68.10 m 2 /g which is 9 times greater than that of BV nanoparticles (7.34 m 2 /g). The synthesized AC-BV nanoparticles degrade the pollutant about 98% within 60 minutes whereas BV nanoparticles degrade 47% at same condition. The influence of AC on BV triggers the rate of degradation, due to the narrow bandgap and porosity of the carbon. This study provides a promising photocatalyst to be used for treatment of effluents in large scale.