Sol-Gel Synthesis of Na2Ta4O11 Nanocrystals Showing High Efficient Photocatalytic Performance

2014 ◽  
Vol 1058 ◽  
pp. 35-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Guo Su ◽  
Xu Yang ◽  
Ting Ting Wang ◽  
Bao Ling Zhu ◽  
Xiao Jing Wang

Semiconductors showing high efficient photocatalytic activity have attracted great interest, because they provide a potential solution to many environmental pollution problems that humankind is currently facing. This work reports on the sol-gel synthesis of Na2Ta4O11 nanocrystals and its photocatalytic performance toward Red G. The samples were carefully characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and the Barrett–Emmett–Teller technique. By modulating the synthetic condition, the sol-gel reaction yielded pure Na2Ta4O11 nanocrystals with diameter of ~32 nm from the peak broadening of (006) plane using Scherrer formula. It is found that the as-prepared Na2Ta4O11 nanocrystals showed a band gap energy of 3.63 eV, which is much smaller than that of Na2Ta4O11 prepared by flux approach. The relative narrowed band gap energy of Na2Ta4O11 nanocrystals may predict superior photocatalytic activity. By careful photocatalytic test, it is found that Na2Ta4O11 nanocrystals showed excellent photocatalytic activity toward Red G. The photocatalytic degradation efficiency was estimated to be 94.0% within a time intervals of 40 minutes. Controlled experiment by adding active species scavengers gave evidence that the degradation of Red G is dominated by the oxidation reaction of the generated O2-∙ active species taking place on the surface of the photocatalyst.

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 99
Author(s):  
Siti Zulaikha Suhaili ◽  
Muhamad Kamil Yaakob ◽  
Siti Irma Yuana Saaid ◽  
Umi Sarah Jais

Pure TiO2 and Cr doped TiO2 (0.1-1.0wt% Cr) nanoparticles were synthesized via sol gel method. This study focuses on narrowing the TiO2 band gap energies in order to enhance the photocatalytic efficiency under visible light. The synthesized samples were characterized by X-Ray diffraction method (XRD), field emmision (FESEM) and also UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS).The photocatalytic activity under sunlight irradiation was demonstrated by photocatalytic decomposition of methylene blue in water using UV/Vis spectrophotometer. The XRD analysis of pure TiO2 and doped TiO2 calcined at 500oC showed a mixture of anatase and rutile phases with decreasing crystallites size from 13.3nm to 11.6nm as the concentration of Cr was increased. The anatase-rutile phase transformation increased from 28.8% to 57.4%. An indication shows that at 0.75wt%, Cr the anatase and rutile phases have equal composition percentage. This study demonstrated that band gap energy of TiO2 was reduced with Cr doping which could enhance the photocatalytic efficiency. Sample containing 1.0wt% exhibit the lowest optical band gap energy at 2.86 eV. The optimum chromium doping concentration was found to be at 0.1 wt% Cr corresponding to band gap energy of 2.87 eV and degradation rate of 84%. 


2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 99
Author(s):  
Siti Zulaikha Suhaili ◽  
Muhamad Kamil Yaakob ◽  
Siti Irma Yuana Sheikh Mohd Saaid ◽  
Umi Sarah Jais

Pure TiO2 and Cr doped TiO2 (0.1-1.0wt% Cr) nanoparticles were synthesized via sol gel method. This study focuses on narrowing the TiO2 band gap energies in order to enhance the photocatalytic efficiency under visible light. The synthesized samples were characterized by X-Ray diffraction method (XRD), field emmision (FESEM) and also UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS).The photocatalytic activity under sunlight irradiation was demonstrated by photocatalytic decomposition of methylene blue in water using UV/Vis spectrophotometer. The XRD analysis of pure TiO2 and doped TiO2 calcined at 500oC showed a mixture of anatase and rutile phases with decreasing crystallites size from 13.3nm to 11.6nm as the concentration of Cr was increased. The anatase-rutile phase transformation increased from 28.8% to 57.4%. An indication shows that at 0.75wt%, Cr the anatase and rutile phases have equal composition percentage. This study demonstrated that band gap energy of TiO2 was reduced with Cr doping which could enhance the photocatalytic efficiency. Sample containing 1.0wt% exhibit the lowest optical band gap energy at 2.86 eV. The optimum chromium doping concentration was found to be at 0.1 wt% Cr corresponding to band gap energy of 2.87 eV and degradation rate of 84%.


2017 ◽  
Vol 36 (8) ◽  
pp. 789-793 ◽  
Author(s):  
Morteza Enhessari

AbstractNanoscale FeAl2O4 was successfully synthesized via sol–gel method. The sol constituents containing iron and aluminum cations were formed homogenously in stearic acid gel (formation of organic precursor). The pure structural analysis and the size of the spinels were confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD). It was observed that the size of the nanoscale materials obtained at around 30–40nm. The micrographs of FeAl2O4 evidenced the homogenous and nanosize formation of spinel. The semiconducting behavior of this mixed metal oxide was observed at 3.14eV based on the band gap energy (Eg). The final nanoscale materials exhibited a superparamagnetic behavior with a saturation magnetization of 9.8 emu/g at applied field of 10 kOe.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 108
Author(s):  
Yayuk Astuti ◽  
Brigita Maria Listyani ◽  
Linda Suyati ◽  
Adi Darmawan

Research on synthesis of bismuth oxide (Bi2O3) using sol-gel method with varying calcination temperatures at 500, 600, and 700 °C has been done. This study aims to determine the effect of calcination temperature on the characteristics of the obtained products which encompasses crystal structure, surface morphology, band-gap energy, and photocatalytic activity for the decolorization of methyl orange dyes through its kinetic study. Bismuth oxide prepared by sol-gel method was undertaken by dissolving Bi(NO3)3·5H2O and citric acid in HNO3. The mixture was stirred then heated at 100 °C. The gel formed was dried in the oven and then calcined at 500, 600, and 700 °C for 5 h. The obtained products were a pale yellow powder, indicating the formation of bismuth oxide. This is confirmed by the existence of Bi–O and Bi–O–Bi functional groups through FTIR analysis. All three products possess the same mixed crystal structures of α-Bi2O3 (monoclinic) and γ-Bi2O3 (body center cubic), but their morphologies and band gap values are different. The higher the calcination temperature, the larger the particle size and the smaller the band gap value. The accumulative differences in characteristics appoint SG700 to have the highest photocatalytic activity compared to SG600 and SG500 as indicated by its percent degradation value and decolorization rate constant.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 1392
Author(s):  
Leny Yuliati ◽  
Mohd Hayrie Mohd Hatta ◽  
Siew Ling Lee ◽  
Hendrik Oktendy Lintang

In this work, the crystalline carbon nitride photocatalysts were synthesized by an ionothermal technique with varied synthesis temperature of 500, 550, and 600 °C, and synthesis time of 2, 4, and 6 h. Fourier transform infrared spectra showed the successful formation of the prepared carbon nitrides from their characteristic vibration peaks. X-ray diffraction patterns suggested that the same phase of poly(triazine imide) and heptazine could be observed, but with different crystallinity. The optical properties showed that different temperatures and synthesis time resulted in the different band gap energy (2.72–3.02 eV) as well as the specific surface area (24–73 m2 g–1). The transmission electron microscopy image revealed that the crystalline carbon nitride has a near-hexagonal prismatic crystallite size of about 50 nm. Analysis by high-performance liquid chromatography showed that the best photocatalytic activity for phenol degradation under solar light simulator was obtained on the crystalline carbon nitride prepared at the 550 °C for 4 h, which would be due to the high crystallinity, suitable low band gap energy (2.82 eV), and large specific surface area (73 m2 g–1). Controlling both the temperature and synthesis time is shown to be important to obtain the best physicochemical properties leading to high activity.


Nanomaterials ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuanyuan Li ◽  
Xiaofang Tian ◽  
Yaoqiong Wang ◽  
Qimei Yang ◽  
Yue Diao ◽  
...  

Using solar energy to remove antibiotics from aqueous environments via photocatalysis is highly desirable. In this work, a novel type-II heterojunction photocatalyst, MgSn(OH)6/SnO2, was successfully prepared via a facile one-pot in situ hydrothermal method at 220 °C for 24 h. The obtained heterojunctions were characterized via powder X-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The photocatalytic performance was evaluated for photodegradation of tetracycline solution under ultraviolet irradiation. The initial concentration of tetracycline solution was set to be 20 mg/L. The prepared heterojunctions exhibited superior photocatalytic activity compared with the parent MgSn(OH)6 and SnO2 compounds. Among them, the obtained MgSn(OH)6/SnO2 heterojunction with MgCl2·6H2O:SnCl4·5H2O = 4:5.2 (mmol) displayed the highest photocatalytic performance and the photodegradation efficiency conversion of 91% could be reached after 60 min under ultraviolet irradiation. The prepared heterojunction maintained its performance after four successive cycles of use. Active species trapping experiments demonstrated that holes were the dominant active species. Hydroxyl radicals and superoxide ions had minor effects on the photocatalytic oxidation of tetracycline. Photoelectrochemical measurements were used to investigate the photocatalytic mechanism. The enhancement of photocatalytic activity could be assigned to the formation of a type-II junction photocatalytic system, which was beneficial for efficient transfer and separation of photogenerated electrons and holes. This research provides an in situ growth strategy for the design of highly efficient photocatalysts for environmental restoration.


2015 ◽  
Vol 1131 ◽  
pp. 237-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
Akkarat Wongkaew ◽  
Chanida Soontornkallapaki ◽  
Naritsara Amhae ◽  
Wichet Lamai

This work aims to study the effect of ZnO containing in TiO2/SiO2 film on the superhydrophilic property after exposed to different types of light. The metal solutions were prepared by sol-gel technique and the film was deposited on glass slides by dip coating method. The parameter studied was the amount of ZnO in the TiO2/SiO2 film. The contents of ZnO were 5-20% weight (increased by 5%). The amount of TiO2 was constant at 30% weight. The obtained films were analyzed for their roughness. The results indicated that film roughness changed according to the ZnO contents. With 5%ZnO in the thin film, the roughness was 0.726 nm while 20%ZnO obtained the roughness of 2.128 nm. UV-Vis spectrophotometer was used for measuring of transmittance of films. At wavelength of 550 nm, the transmittances of each film were greater than 90%. Band gap energy of each film was calculated from the transmittance data. It was found that the average band gap energy of the films was 2.47 eV. Then, the films contained various amount of ZnO were grouped into 2 sets. The first set was exposed to visible light while the other set was exposed to UV. The duration of exposure was 5 hr. Both sets of films after exposed to any light were kept in a black box controlled relative humidity of 85%. Each film was measured contact angle every day. It was found that the 30%TiO2/5%Zn/SiO2 film exposed to visible light showed the best superhydrophilic property. The contact angle was about 0-5° within 3 days. This may due to the reduction of band gap energy in the presence of ZnO in TiO2/SiO2 films to 2.41 eV and the roughness of the film.


2012 ◽  
Vol 622-623 ◽  
pp. 883-888
Author(s):  
Natkritta Boonprakob ◽  
Natda Wetchakun ◽  
Sukon Phanichphant ◽  
Jun Chen ◽  
Burapat Inceesungvorn

Nitrogen-loaded TiO2(N-loaded TiO2), a visible-light driven catalyst, was successfully synthesized by the modified sol-gel method. Physical characterizations of the as-prepared catalysts have been performed by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Diffuse reflectance UVvisspectroscopy(DRUVvis), Raman spectroscopyand BETspecific surface areain order to obtain structure-activity relationship. Results from Raman spectroscopy clearly suggested that N atoms were incorporated into the TiO2crystal lattice as evidenced by the vibrational peak of TiN in TiO2-xNx.DR UVvis results also suggested that the nitrogen dopant might be responsible for narrowing the TiO2band gap energy, thus resulting in a shift towards the visiblelight region. Photocatalytic activity of N-loaded TiO2evaluated through the degradation of methyl orange (MO)under visible light irradiation (l> 400 nm) indicated that all N-loaded photocatalysts exhibited significantly higher activities than the unloaded TiO2and Degussa P25 TiO2. According to the results from DR UV-vis, XRD and BET studies, the enhanced photoactivity observed from N-loaded samples might be due to a decrease in TiO2band gap energy and/or changes in chemical and physical properties of the materials upon loading with nitrogen.


2012 ◽  
Vol 550-553 ◽  
pp. 196-199
Author(s):  
Ze Wan ◽  
Fa Mei Feng ◽  
Jian Zhang Li ◽  
Jin Jin He ◽  
Jun Bo Zhong ◽  
...  

This paper reveals that photocatalytic activity of Bi2O3 under visible light towards the decolorization of Methyl Orange solution can be greatly enhanced by doping Pr into the lattice of Bi2O3 using a sol-gel method. The photocatalysts were characterized by BET, UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and surface photovoltage spectroscopy (SPS), respectively. The result shows that 4%Pr doped Bi2O3 possesses the best photocatalytic activity under visible light.


2017 ◽  
Vol 889 ◽  
pp. 234-238
Author(s):  
Mohd Hasmizam Razali ◽  
Nur Arifah Ismail ◽  
Mahani Yusoff

Pure and F doped TiO2 nanotubes was synthesized using simple hydrothermal method. The hydrothermal was conducted using teflon-liner autoclave and maintained at 150oC for 24 hours. The characterization of synthesised product was carried out using x-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscope (TEM), energy dispersive of x-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and ultra violet – visible light diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-Vis DRS) for band gap measurements. XRD patterns indicated that anatase TiO2 phase was remained after F doping suggested that fluorine was highly dispersed into TiO2 by substituted with O in the TiO2 lattice to formed TiO2-xFx solid solution. Morphology investigation using TEM found out small diameter of nanotubes structure within 8 – 10 nm of pure and F doped TiO2 nanotubes. The band gap energy (Eg) of both nanotubes samples were almost similar proposing that F doping does not modify the band gap energy.


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