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Enhancement of the visible light photocatalytic activity of heterojunction In2O3/BiVO4 composites

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Abstract

Novel In2O3/BiVO4 heterojunction composite photocatalysts with tunable In2O3 content were prepared using a mild hydrothermal method. The structure, composition, and optical properties of the In2O3/BiVO4 composites were determined by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface analysis, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Furthermore, photocatalytic activities of the as-prepared composites were investigated by studying the degradation of methylene blue (MB) solutions under simulated visible light irradiation (λ > 420 nm). It was found that the 50 % proportion of In2O3 in the In2O3/BiVO4 composite exhibited the highest photocatalytic performance, leading to 91 % decomposition of MB within 240 min of irradiation.

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Acknowledgments

This research was financially supported by National Natural Science Foundations of China (51378217, U1360101), Research Project of Guangdong Provincial Department of Science and Technology (2012A010800006), and Guangdong Natural Science Foundation (S2012020010887).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Environment and Energy, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510006, China

    J. Z. Yin, S. B. Huang, Z. C. Jian, M. L. Pan, Y. Q. Zhang & Z. B. Fei

  2. State Key Laboratory of Pulp and Paper Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    S. B. Huang

  3. Analytical and Testing Center, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    X. R. Xu

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  1. J. Z. Yin
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  2. S. B. Huang
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Correspondence to S. B. Huang.

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Yin, J.Z., Huang, S.B., Jian, Z.C. et al. Enhancement of the visible light photocatalytic activity of heterojunction In2O3/BiVO4 composites. Appl. Phys. A 120, 1529–1535 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-015-9349-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-015-9349-z

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