Journal of Inorganic Materials, Volume. 35, Issue 7, 789(2020)
To investigate the modification mechanism of mixed heterogeneous on photocatalysis, a series of Nd3+-doped BiVO4 photo-catalysts with different Nd3+ contents were synthesized through a facile hydrothermal reaction. The samples exhibit Nd3+ content-dependent phase transition from monoclinic to tetragonal phase, as demonstrated by XRD and Raman analyses. SEM images show that the phase transition is accompanied by obvious morphology variation. Less than 1at% Nd3+-doped monocline BiVO4 is composed of irregular particles, while more than 7at% Nd3+ doping results in tetragonal phase BiVO4 of sphere-like or kernel with groove surface. When Nd3+content is in the range of 1at%-7at%, the micron cuboid bars appear in the samples. More importantly, monoclinic and tetragonal phase is concomitant in the product and a heterogeneous junction with staggered band structure is formed. The Rhodamine B degradation efficiencies of all Nd3+-doped samples are higher than those of undoped samples due to the regular morphology after doping. The formed heterogeneous junction inhibits photo-generated electrons and holes recombination of Nd3+-doped BiVO4, inducing 99.4% catalytic efficiency in 4at% Nd3+-doped sample. The novel morphology and the intrinsic mechanism of photocatalysis enhancement upon Nd3+-doped BiVO4 are obtained from the synthesis strategy and the energy band structure.
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Jingwei XU, Zheng LI, Zepu WANG, Han YU, Qi HE, Nian FU, Bangfu DING, Shukai ZHENG, Xiaobing YAN.
Category: RESEARCH PAPER
Received: Aug. 12, 2019
Accepted: --
Published Online: Mar. 3, 2021
The Author Email: DING Bangfu (dbf1982@126.com)