Synthesis and Photocatalytic Activity of TiO2/V2O5 Composite Catalyst Doped with Rare Earth Ions

TiO2/V2O5 catalyst doped with rare earth ions was prepared by sol-gel method. Titanium tetrapropoxide and vanadium pentoxide were used as precursor of the composite catalyst and rare earth ions were used as dopant. The crystal phases, crystalline sizes, microstructure, absorption spectra of doped composite catalyst were studied by XRD, EDS, FT-IR and UV-Vis. Photoactivity of the prepared catalyst under ultraviolet irradiation were evaluated by degradation of methyl orange （MO） in aqueous solution. It is shown that the prepared catalyst is composed of anatase and futile. The rare earth ions are highly dispersed in composite catalyst. All the doped catalysts appear higher photocatalytic activity than TiO2/V2O5 catalyst and catalyst doped with Ce^4＋ present the best activity to MO.     

Preparation of Nano-TiO2 Doped with Cerium and Its Photocatalytic Activity

Cerium-doped titanium dioxide nano-powders were prepared through the sol-gel method and the compound sampies were characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, and UV/Vis diffuse reflectance spectra （DRS）. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by photocatalytic degradation of phenol in water. The results of XRD, TEM, and DRS show that pure TiO2 and Ce-doped TiO2 powder crystallines are a mixture of anatase and rutile ; the doping can retard the development of the grain size of TiO2 and decrease the diameter of TiO2 from more than 20 nm of pure TiO2 to about 10 nm; the doped TiO2 can improve the light absorption of TiO2 and suitable doping content tends to move the DRS spectrum of TiO2 towards visible light, but too much doping is not good for the light absorption ability. The results of the photocatalytic experiments show that doping with Ce content of 0.08% -0.4% can increase the photocatalytic activity of TiO2; however, doping with Ce content of 0.5% -2.5% can significantly decrease the photocatalytic activity of TiO2. The favorite doping content is 0.4% in the range of our experiments.     

Effects of La^3＋ Non-Uniformly Doping in TiO2 Films on Photocatalytic Activities

TiO2 thin films non-uniformly doped by La^3＋ were prepared by sol-gel method. The comparison of thin film activities, which was characterized by photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange, shows that doping modes have great activities. The non-uniformly effects on photocatalytic doped TiO2 films resuh in good photocatalytic activities with an optimal concentration; about 0. 5% （ atom fraction ）. UV-Vis transmittance spectra indicate that the absorption edges of these TiO2 thin films shift to ward longer wave- lengths remarkably, and electrochemical behavior also reveales that e^- -h^＋ pairs are prone to formation and separation under UV irradiation. The mechanism of photocatalytic activities are enhanced by La^3＋ non-uniformly doping was discussed on the analogy of the theory of “window effect” of solar cell heterojunction.     

Effect of Ho-doping on photocatalytic activity of nanosized TiO2 catalyst

Ho-doped TiO2 nanoparticles with higher photocatalytic activity were prepared by an acid-catalyzed sol-gel method. The photocatalytic decomposition of methyl orange in aqueous solution was used as a probe reaction to evaluate their photocatalytic activities. The effects of Ho doping on the crystallite sizes, crystal pattern, surface composition, and optical property of the catalysts were investigated by means of techniques such as X-Ray Diffraction （XRD）, Transmission Electron Microscopy （TEM）, Diffuse Reflectance UV-Vis Spectroscopy （UV-Vis DRS）, Fourier Transform Infrared （FT-IR）, and Photo-Luminiscence （PL） spectra. Moreover, the modification mechanism of Ho doping was also discussed. The results showed that Ho doping could inhibit phase transformation from anatase to rntile, suppress the growth of TiO2 grains, cause blue shift of the absorption spectrum edge, accelerate surface hydroxylation, and enhance the separation efficiency of photoinduced electron-hole pairs, which resulted in a significant improvement in the photoreactivity of Ho-doped TiO2. Among them, the Ho-doped TiO2 calcined at 500℃ achieved the highest photocatalytic activity.     

Synthesis,characteristics, and antibacterial activity of a rare-earth samarium/silver/titanium dioxide inorganic nanomaterials

An inorganic nanomaterials combination of Sm, Ag, and TiO2 was synthesized using supercritical fluid drying （SCFD） combined with solgel techniques. The structure, photocatalysis and bacteriostatic activity of the materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XRPS）, photocatalytic performance, and antibacterial activity experiments. The XRD results showed that the average particle diameter of Sm/Ag/TiO2 was 14.62 nm and Ag and Sm ions were dispersed on the surface of TiO2 in a highly dispersed, amorphous form. The TEM image showed that the size of the particle was 12 nm using the scherer formula. The XPS result showed that the element Sm was doped and Ag was loaded inorganic nanomaterials successfully. Sm/Ag/TiO2 exhibited optimal photocatalytic properties at 600 oC, the photocatalytic optimal proportion of Sm/Ag/TiO2 was 2：2：100. When the molar ratio was 2：2：100, the bacteriostatic circle diameter was 16 mm for Staphylococcus aureus, the minimum bacteriostatic concentration was 200μg/mL for white beads coccus, and the minimum bactericidal concentration was 2×10^4μg/mL for white beads coccus. The SEM results showed that the antibacterial material attached to the candida albicans cell surface, cells appeared fold deformation. Therefore the inorganic nanomaterials Sm/Ag/TiO2 had high temperature resistance, good photocatalytic and antibacterial characteristics in visible light.     

Photocatalytic activity of Eu3＋-doped ZnO nanorods synthesized via microwave assisted technique

The doped ZnO nanorods as a photocatalyst with different Eu contents were prepared by microwave assisted method and they were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction(XRD),energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy(EDS),UV-Vis spectroscopy,surface area Brunauer-Emmett-Teller(BET),X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS),scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and transmission electron microscopy(TEM).The average crystallite size and band gap energy of Eu-doped ZnO were varied with the Eu content.The XRD pattern of Eu-doped ZnO indicated hexagonal crystal structure with an average crystallite size of 25 nm.The presence of europium with trivalent state and its doping successfully into the crystal lattice of ZnO matrix were confirmed by XPS technique.The photocatalytic activity of Eu-doped ZnO nanorods was evaluated for methyl orange degradation.The photocatalytic experiments showed ～91% degradation of methyl orange over 0.2 mol.% Eu doped ZnO sample within 3 h under UV light(365 nm).     

Effect of hydroxyl groups on hydrophilic and photocatalytic activities of rare earth doped titanium dioxide thin films

Rare earth(Y, La and Nd) doped TiO2 thin films were prepared on glass slides by sol-gel method. The photocatalytic decomposition of methylene blue in aqueous solution was used as a probe reaction to evaluate their photocatalytic activities. The effects of hydroxyl groups on hydrophilic and photocatalytic activities were investigated by means of techniques such as X-ray diffraction(XRD), atomic force microscopy(AFM), Fourier transform infrared(FTIR), optical contact angle, UV-Visible spectroscopy and VIS spectroscopy. The results showed that an appropriate doping of rare earth could cause the TiO2 lattice distortion, inhibited phase transition from anatase to rutile, accelerated surface hydroxylation and produced more hydroxyl groups, which resulted in a denser surface and smaller grains(40–60 nm), and a significant improvement in the hydrophilicity and photoreactivity of TiO2 thin films. The optimal content of rare earth was between 0.1 wt.% and 0.3 wt.%. Moreover, the modification mechanism of rare earth doping was also discussed.     

Enhanced photocatalytic activities of Nd-doped TiO_2 under visible light using a facile sol-gel method

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles modified with neodymium in the range of 1 mol% to 5 mol% were prepared with template-free sol-gel method.The structures of obtained samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction analysis.X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy,scanning electron microscopy,transmission electron microscopy and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy.The photocatalytic activity of the obtained samples was evaluated by photodegradation of methyl orange in aqueous solution under ultraviolet-visible(λ 350 nm) and visible(λ 420 nm) irradiation.The experimental results show that the 1 mol% Nd-doped TiO_2 exhibits the highest photocatalytic activity,of which the degradation can reach to 96.5% under visible irradiation.According to the XRD results,the pristine samples are combined with anatase TiO_2 and rutile TiO_2.while the Nd-doped TiO_2 samples are anatase TiO_2 only.This transformation has made an obvious promotion of photocatalyst activity after modification.     

Synthesis and Characteristic Study on Complexes of Europium（Ⅲ） and Maleic Acid Doped with Non-Fluorescent Ions

Complex of europium （Ⅲ） with maleic acid, and binuclear complexes of europium（Ⅲ）with maleic acid doped with non-fluorescent ions gadolinium, lanthanum and yttrium, were synthesized. The compositions and structures of complexes were characterized with elemental analysis, single crystal X-ray diffraction, IR and DSC-TG. Fluorescent properties were studied with fluorescence spectrum. The results indicated that the strongest fluorescent complexes were obtained when the ratio of europium and non-fluorescent ion was 8：2. The order of Eu^3＋ fluorescence strengthened by three doped rare earths was Gd^3＋ 〉La^3＋ 〉Y^3＋     

Preparation and Photocatalytic Behaviors of Nanoporous Polyoxotungstate-Anatase TiO2 Composites

Nanoporous anatase TiO2 crystalline particles coupled with Keggin or Wells-Dawson unit, H3PW12O40/TiO2 or H6P2W18O62/TiO2, were prepared at a low temperature （200℃ ） using sol-gel method combined with hydrothermal treatment at programmed temperature. The as-prepared composites have uniform anatase phase, and they exhibit both micrand mesoporosities with pore sizes of 0.6 and 4.0 nm, respectively, and their average size is lower than 10 nm. Photocatalytic tests show the composites exhibit relatively higher photocatalytic activities to decompose the organocholorine pesticide hexachlorobenzene（HCB） than anatase TiO2, the starting polyoxotungstates, and EuEOa/TiO2 prepared by using sol-gel method, and this was attributed to （ 1 ） the synergistic effect of photoactive anatase TiO2 with the polyoxotungstate, and （2） the fascinating physical and chemical properties of the porous materials.     

Influence of inorganic anions and organic additives on photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange with supported polyoxometalates as photocatalyst

A novel supported polyoxometalate(POM),phosphotungstic acid immobilized into yttrium-doped TiO2(HPW-Y-TiO2) nano photocatalyst was prepared via sol-gel and impregnation method.The samples were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FT-IR),X-ray diffraction(XRD) and N2 absorption-desorption analysis.The results showed that the supported POM exhibited Keggin structure and anatase phase with large BET surface area.The influences of inorganic anions and organic additives on the photocatalytic degradation of azo dye methyl orange with HPW-Y-TiO2 as photocatalyst under UV light(λ≥365 nm) were investigated.Results showed that inorganic anions Cl-,SO42-,CO32-and NO3-had inhibition effect on the degradation of methyl orange.A great enhancement of degradation rate was obtained while H2O2 and ethyl alcohol were applied.The degradation rates improved with the increase of H2O2 concentration.The optimum additive amount of ethyl alcohol was 0.5 mol/L.The possible mechanisms of the effects of additives on methyl orange degradation were discussed.     

Photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange by polyoxometalates supported on yttrium-doped TiO_2

A series of novel photocatalysts, H3PW12O40-Y-TiO2 nanocomposites with different H3PW12O40 loading levels (10%-40%) were prepared by impregnation method. And the Y-TiO2 support, doped with yttrium, was synthesized via sol-gel technique. The prepared catalysts were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen adsorption-desorption analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The processes allowed obtaining Keggin structure and crystallized anatase with large BET surface area as well as uniform distribution. The effects of H3PW12O40 loadings, catalyst dose, initial pH and concentration of dye solution on the degradation kinetics of methyl orange under UV light (λ≥365 nm) were discussed. Kinetics studies showed that the photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange fitted the apparent first-order reaction. Methyl orange was totally degraded in 21 min under optimum conditions: 20% loading, 0.03 g dose and pH 1.0. The catalyst was stable and easily to be separated from reaction system for recovery.     

Preparation and Fluorescence Properties of TiO2 ：Eu Nano-Materials

A series of europium-doped titanium dioxide (TiO2) fluorescent nano-materials prepared by sol-gel method is presented. The phase structure and crystalline sizes of TiO2:Eu, which is doped with different europium content and then heat-treated at different temperature, were investigated by XRD ,TG, DTA and TEM. The results show that europium could be introduced into TiO2 under high temperature and it can suppress the structural phase transition from anatase to rutile and the crystal growth of TiO2 in TiO2:Eu nano-materials. The fluorescence spectra were examined by fluorescence spectrophotometer, and the results show that the fluorescence intensity is the strongest when europium content is 2.68% (molefraction) and the heat-treated temperature is 700℃. From the measurement results of the fluorescence lifetimes, it can be seen that the fluorescence lifetime could be prolonged when europium is incorporated in TiO2.     

Synergetic effect of thermo-photocatalytic oxidation of benzene on Pt-TiOe/Ce-MnOx

Pt-TiO2/Ce-MnOx catalysts were obtained by depositing TiO2 and platinum, respectively,on the Ce-Mn oxides prepared by co-precipitation method. The phases of CeO2 and anatase TiO2 were observed in the catalysts from X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) revealed that lattice oxygen and surface active oxygen were found to be the major components of O1s. The experiment results showed that the kinetic constant of thermo-photocatalysis was 7.6 times of the kinetic constant of single photocatalysis, and was 2.29 times of the kinetic constant sum of photocatalytic and thermal catalytic reaction.     

Study of erbium (Ⅲ) doped titanium dioxide nanoparticles by photoacoustic spectroscopy

Nanocrystalline titania as photocatalyst has attracted considerable attention for its potential use in environmental cleaning.Recently,lanthanide ions doped titania samples have been shown to increase the photocatalytic efficiency of selected reactions.In this work,TiO2 nanoparticles doped with Er3+ were prepared via an ultrasonic assisted sol-gel method.The optical properties of the samples were determined by photoacoustic(PA) spectroscopy.It was found that the absorption edge shifted to lower wavelength w...     

Preparation of Rare Earth Doped Alumina-Siloxane Gel and Its ER Effect

Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) was used to wrap alumina-siloxane sol through emulsion polymerization. A kind of suspensions with notable ER effect was produced by fully mixing the prepared microcapsule with silicon oil. Meanwhile a series of PMMA wrapped alumina - siloxane gel doped with rare earths was obtained and its ER effect was tested, like viscosity of different rare earth ion doped samples in different powder concentrations and at different temperatures, at the same time, leak current density and dielectric constant were measured. Resuits show that the ER effect of this suspension is remarkable, and its stability is much better. The condition of emulsion polymerization and the mechanism of effect are discussed.     

Effect of Yb203 Additive on Transformation Behavior of Anatase for TiO2/（ O＇ ＋ β＇ ）-Sialon Multi phase Ceramics

TiO2/（O＇ ＋ β＇）-Sialon multiphase ceramics were prepared with nano TiO2 （anatase） powder and （O＇ ＋ β＇）-Sialon powder as raw materials. Effect of Yb2O3 additive on transformation behavior of anatase for TiO2/（O＇ ＋ β＇）-Sialon multi phase ceramic was investigated and its influence mechanism was discussed. XRD was employed for the analysis of phase composition and lattice parameters. The results show that even though Yb2O3 has no obvious influence on starting temperature of phase transformation, it significantly accelerates the transformation process, which displays a weakened effect with more Yb2O3 addition. There exist two forms of the added Yb2O3 ： some enters TiO2 lattice and the other deposits on the surface of TiO2. The function of Yb2O3 on phase transformation of anatase can be attributed to the coaction of active and negative influence mechanisms as follows： some Yb^n＋ enter TiO2 lattice and replace Ti^4＋ , as well as the redox reaction between Yb^3＋ and TiO2, which promote the transformation, whereas other Yb2O3 deposits on the surface of TiO2, and Ti- O-Yb bond is formed by the coaction of Yb^3＋ and TiO2, which inhibit the process.     

Photoluminescent properties of Eu3＋ and Tb3＋ codoped Gd2O3 nanowires and bulk materials

In this paper, the Gd2O3：Eu3＋,Tb3＋phosphors with different doping concentrations of Eu3＋and Tb3＋ions were prepared by a hydrothermal method for nanocrystals and the solid-phase method for microcrystals. The interaction of the doped ions with different concentrations and the luminescent properties of the nanocrystals and microcrystals were studied systematically. Their structure and morphology of Gd2O3：Eu3＋,Tb3＋phosphors were analyzed by means of X-ray powder diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron mi-croscopy （TEM） and scanning electron microscopy （SEM）. The photoluminescence （PL） properties of Gd2O3：Eu3＋,Tb3＋phosphors were also systematically investigated. The results indicated that when the concentration of doped Eu3＋was fixed at 1 mol.%, the emis-sion intensity of Eu3＋ions was degenerating with Tb3＋content increasing, while when the Tb3＋content was fixed at 1 mol.%, the emission intensity of Tb3＋ions reached a maximum when the concentration of Eu3＋was 2 mol.%, implying that the energy transfer from Eu3＋to Tb3＋took place. In addition, Tb3＋could inspire blue-green light and the Eu3＋could inspire red light. Therefore co-doping systems by controlling the doping concentration and the hosts are the potential white emission materials.     

Photocatalytic degradation of pesticide residues with RE³⁺-doped nano-TiO₂

The photocatalytic degradation effects of carbofuran solution under concentration of 0.2,0.4,0.8 g/L Re3+-doped nano-TiO2 were studied.The highest degradation rate of 54.89% was obtained after 4 h degradation when the concentration of nano-TiO2 was 0.4 g/L.Then field trials of photocatalytic degradation with suspension nano-TiO2 were conducted.The photocatalytic degradation effect of organic phosphorus and carbamate pesticides in tomato leaves and soil with different concentratio catalyst(0,0.2,0.4,0.6,0.8 g/L) were studied.The results showed that nano-TiO2 could significantly increase photocatalytic degradation rate of pesticide residues in tomato leaves and soil.Pesticide residues degradation rate could be increased by 20%-30% on the tomato leaves and 15%-20% in soil,and the best concentration of photocatalytic degradation was 0.2-0.4 g/L.     

Y/Eu co-doped TiO2:synthesis and photocatalytic activities under UV-light

Y and Eu co-doped nano-TiO2 photocatalysts were successfully prepared via a sol-gel method and characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD), transmission electron microscopy(TEM), ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometry(UV-vis), photoluminescence(PL) and Fourier transform infrared(FT-IR) spectra. Experimental results indicated that Y and Eu doping inhibited the growth of crystalline size and the transformation from anatase to rutile phase and had the function of reducing particle reunion. At the same time, co-doping could also enhance the absorption in visible region and then narrowed the band gap. The photocatalytic activities of the samples were evaluated by the degradation of methylene blue(MB) under ultraviolet(UV) light irradiation, which showed much enhanced photocatalytic activities over un-doped TiO2. The degradation rate of 1.5% Y/Eu-TiO2 of methylene blue was 86%, which was about 5 times of that of un-doped TiO2, and the possible reasons for the improvement of photocatalytic activities were analyzed. In this experiment, the dopant amount of rare earth was 1.5% and the ratio of Y:Eu was 2:3 for the maximum photocatalytic degradation, and the sample calcined at 500 oC showed the best reactivity. For the best samples above, the removal rate of phenol under visble light was 53% whthin 2 h.