Synthesis of yttrium and cerium doped ZnO nanoparticles as highly inexpensive and stable photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution

Yttrium and cerium co-doped ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by combustion route and characterized using X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),Brunauer-Emmett-Teller(BET),energy dispersive spectroscopy(EDS),X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS),UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy(UV-vis DRS),photoluminescence(PL)and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy(EIS)techniques.The introduction of yttrium ions has efficiently increased the relative percentage of Ce³⁺ions in ZnO.Yttrium and cerium co-doped ZnO shows efficient photo activity for hydrogen evolution(10.61 mmol/((g·h))higher than previously reported optimal value for rare earth codoped ZnO photocatalysts.This remarkably increased hydrogen evolution can be ascribed to the synergy between electronic anchoring effect of Y³⁺/Y²⁺and Ce⁴⁺/Ce³⁺redox couples.This report presents new idea for the synthesis of efficient photocatalyst using economical route and ion anchoring effect.The hydrogen evolution was also tested using Na₂S and Na₂SO₃as electron donors under visible light illumination.The synthesized photocatalysts also exhibit high stability.     

Lanthanum and boron co-doped BiVO4 with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity for degradation of methyl orange

BiVO4 photocatalysts co-doped with La and B were prepared by sol-gel method using citric acid as chelate.The samples were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS),X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),Brumauer-Emmett-Teller(BET),UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectra(DRS) and the photocatalytic activity was investigated by photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange(MO).The results showed that boron and lanthanum ions incorporated into the lattice of BiVO4,and co-doping led to more surface oxygen vacancies,high specific surface areas,small crystallite size,narrow band gap and intense light absorbance in visible region.And the doped La(III) ions could help the separation of photogenerated electrons.Compared with BiVO4 and B-BiVO4,the photocatalytic activity of La-B co-doped BiVO4 was remarkably improved due to the synergistic effects of the co-doped ions.The degradation rate of MO in 60 min was 98.4% when La doping content was 0.05 mol.%,which was much higher than that of pure BiVO4(20%) and B-BiVO4(37%).     

Preparation of cerium and yttrium doped ZnO nanoparticles and tracking their structural,optical,and photocatalytic performances

Yttrium(Y) and cerium(Ce) co-doped ZnO nanoparticles(NPs) were synthesized via the simple sol-gel auto-combustion route.The effect of Ce and Y doping on the structure,morphology,optical,Zeta potential,and photocatalytic activities of ZnO NPs was examined by Fourier transform infrared(FTIR)spectrometer,X-ray diffraction(XRD),transmission electron microscope(TEM),UV-vis spectrophotometer,and Zetasizer instrument.XRD data show that the fabricated samples crystallize into a hexagonal wurtzite struct...     

水热法合成Ag2CO3/ZnO异质结复合光催化剂及其光催化性能

采用水热法合成了一系列不同Ag₂CO₃含量的新型Ag₂CO₃/ZnO异质结复合光催化剂, 运用X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、扫描电镜(SEM)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、傅里叶变换红外光谱(FT-IR)、紫外-可见漫反射吸收光谱(UV-vis DRS)等系列手段对所制备的光催化剂进行了表征, 并以紫外光(254 nm)为光源, 评价了催化剂光催化降解甲基橙的活性, 考察了不同Ag₂CO₃复合量、不同水热温度对ZnO复合光催化剂反应活性的影响.结果表明, 当Ag₂CO₃含量为2 %、水热温度为140 ℃, 复合光催化剂具有最大的光催化活性, 降解率达到86.31 %.Ag₂CO₃/ZnO异质结复合光催化剂具有更高的光催化活性主要原因是复合光催化剂对紫外光有很强的吸收能力, 适量Ag₂CO₃能提高光生电子-空穴对的分离效率, 并改善催化剂的物理性能.      

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.     

La-Ce共掺杂制备La3+-Ce3+/ZnO及其对亚甲基蓝的光催化降解

采用溶胶凝胶法制备了La-Ce共掺杂的La3+-Ce3+/ZnO光催化剂,同时用同种方法制备了ZnO、La3+/ZnO和Ce3+/ZnO以作对比.通过X射线衍射仪、透射电镜、紫外可见分光光度计,比表面及孔隙度分析仪等对制备的光催化剂进行了表征.以亚甲基蓝为模型污染物对所制备的光催化剂的光催化特性进行了评价.结果表明,所制备的La3+-Ce3+/ZnO光催化剂基本呈长方柱状,尺寸平均为57.3 nm,La-Ce共掺杂提高了ZnO的结晶度,促进了晶粒的长大.根据光催化实验结果,La-Ce共掺杂能够显著提高ZnO的光催化活性.在光催化降解500 mL的10 mg·L-1亚甲基蓝实验中,La3+-Ce3+/ZnO光催化剂对亚甲基蓝的降解率达93.7%,比纯ZnO、La3+-ZnO和Ce3+-ZnO分别提高了21.4%、19.2%和9.3%.      

研磨-焙烧法制备BiOI/BiOBr异质结光催化剂及其光催化性能

首先通过沉淀法制备BiOBr和BiOI纳米粉体,然后在主体BiOBr光催化剂中掺杂不同含量的共催化剂BiOI,充分研磨后在不同温度下进行煅烧3 h,制备了BiOI/BiOBr系列复合物,其中BiOI的质量分数分别为1%,2%,4%和8%.采用氮气物理吸附、X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、扫描电镜(SEM)、傅里叶变换红外光谱(FT-IR)、紫外-可见(UV-Vis) 漫反射(DRS) 和光电流测试等技术对所制备的样品进行表征.以酸性橙Ⅱ为模拟污染物, 在可见光下考察了煅烧温度和BiOI复合含量对BiOBr主体光催化剂的光催化性能的影响.研究表明,当复合BiOI的含量为4%,煅烧温度为400 ℃时所制备的复合光催化剂表现出最高光催化性能,其降解效率分别是纯BiOBr和BiOI的1.7和1.9倍.复合BiOI促进了催化剂对可见光的吸收,同时经过研磨和煅烧形成的BiOI/BiOBr异质相结,促进了光生电子(e-) 和空穴(h+) 的分离,提高了光催化活性.      

Synthesis and characterization of CNT/Ce-TiO2 nanocomposite for phenol degradation

An innovative photocatalyst, Carbon nanotube (CNT) supported Ce-TiO2 nanocomposite was successfully synthesized via modi-fied sol gel method and investigated in a batch reactor for abolition of phenol under UV light spectrum. Characterization of catalyst micro-structure and internal properties were done by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), scanning electron micros-copy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS). Ce doping can inhibit phase transfor-mation from anatase to rutile and eliminate the recombination of electron-hole pairs in the catalyst. The presence of CNT in TiO2 composite can both increase the photoactivity under UV and change surface properties to achieve sensitivity to visible light. The optimum mass ratio of CNT support and cerium (Ce) dopant in TiO2 was the prominent factor to harvest CNT/Ce-TiO2 photocatalyst nanocomposite. The results demonstrated that optimum mass ratio of CNT:TiO2:Ce was 0.02:1.0:0.06, which resulted in the great performance of the photocatalyst to de-grade about 94% of phenol in a 50 mg/L solution in only 3 h. In this paper, dissimilar role of CNT support and Ce dopant in the TiO2 photo-catalysis of phenol was also discussed.     

水热法合成Ag2C03／ZnO异质结复合光催化剂及其光催化性能

采用水热法合成了一系列不同Ag2CO3含量的新型Ag2CO/ZnO异质结复合光催化剂,运用X射线粉末衍射（XRD）、扫描电镜（SEM）、X射线光电子能谱（XPS）、傅里叶变换红外光谱（FT-IR）、紫外-可见漫反射吸收光谱（UV-visDRS）等系列手段对所制备的光催化剂进行了表征,并以紫外光（254nm）为光源,评价了催化剂光催化降解甲基橙的活性,考察了不同Ag2CO3复合量、不同水热温度对ZnO复合光催化剂反应活性的影响．结果表明．当Ag2CO3含量为2％、水热温度为140℃,复合光催化剂具有最大的光催化活性,降解率达到86．31％．Ag2CO3/ZnO异质结复合光催化剂具有更高的光催化活性主要原因是复合光催化剂对紫外光有很强的吸收能力,适量A龅C03能提高光生电子一空穴对的分离效率,并改善催化剂的物理性能．     

Enhanced photodegradation activity of ZnO:Eu~(3+)and ZnO:Eu~(3+)@Au 3D hierarchical structures

In this work the flower-like hierarchical structures(HS) based on 3 D pristine ZnO,ZnO:Eu~(3+)and ZnO:Eu~(3+)@Au were successfully obtained by a template-free solvothermal and deposition-precipitation method.The decolorization/photodegradation of these structures towards model organic dye(rhodamine 6 G) was studied.The synthesized ZnO-based HS were characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),UV-vis and photoluminescence(PL) spectroscopies.The proposed synthesis approaches allow to obtain highly crystalline 3 D ZnO,ZnO:Eu~(3+) and ZnO:Eu~(3+)@Au composites.Results of scanning microscopy show that ZnO flower-like HS are assemblies from smaller components,forming larger ones,the whole ZnO structure was approximately 3 μm.Au nanoparticles(size～10 nm)are successfully deposited on ZnO HS surface.Luminescent studies show that ZnO is an ideal matrix for incorporation of Eu~(3+)ions in broad concentration range(Eu~(3+)=1.0 at%-5.0 at%) with an efficient red luminescence.The strong UV emission in ZnO,as well as ZnO;Eu~(3+)HS is observed under 325 nm excitation.Doping of ZnO HS matrix by Eu~(3+)ions leads to the red shift of deep level emission peak(DLE).The PL intensity reaches the maximum up to 5 at% Eu~(3+).The photocatalytic properties of ZnO and ZnO:Eu~(3+)@Au HS were investigated under UV-Vis light irradiation towards rhodamine 6 G.The obtained results demonstrate the synergetic effect of the deposited gold nanoparticles and Eu~(3+)doping on photocatalytic activity of ZnO:Eu~(3+)@Au HS in comparison to pristine ZnO and ZnO:Eu~(3+)HS.     

花状Pt/Bi2WO6微米晶合成、表征及其高可见光催化性能

利用水热-光化学沉积法合成了一系列粒径为1.5~2μm的花状Pt/Bi2WO6微米晶.采用X射线衍射仪（XRD）、N2物理吸附、扫描电子显微镜（SEM）、透射电子显微镜（TEM）、紫外可见漫反射光谱（DRS）、X射线光电子能谱（XPS）和傅里叶变换红外光谱（FT-IR）等手段进行表征.在可见光照射下（λ＞420 nm）,进行了光催化降解染料酸性橙Ⅱ的性能测试.表征和测试结果表明,这些多尺度花状Pt/Bi2WO6复合微米晶,在水溶液中进行光催化降解反应具有优越的性能.此外,沉积1%的Pt 纳米粒子可使光催化活性显著提高,为Bi2WO6的2.8倍.沉积的Pt纳米粒子由于产生表面等离子体的共振吸收,增强对可见光的吸收能力,同时降低了光生电子（e-）和空穴（h+）的复合,促进·OH 自由基的产生,因此能在很大程度上提高光催化活性.此外,这种特殊结构的Pt/Bi2WO6微米晶有利于在水溶液中进行分离和回收,提高催化剂的利用效率.     

可见光下掺N附Ag纳米TiO_2的光催化降解甲基橙

采用溶胶–凝胶法制备纯TiO_2和掺氮TiO_2纳米颗粒(N-TiO_2),然后通过光催化还原在其表面附Ag,得到表面附Ag的纳米TiO_2(即Ag/TiO_2)和掺N附Ag纳米TiO_2(即Ag/N-TiO_2),利用X射线衍射(XRD)、场发射扫描电镜(FE-SEM)、光致发光光谱仪(photoluminescence spectroscopy,PL)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)以及紫外可见漫反射光谱分析(UV-VIS DRS)对TiO_2及其掺杂改性后的组成和结构、光吸收性能以及可见光下对甲基橙溶液的光催化活性等进行表征。结果表明,所有样品均为锐钛矿型,Ag/TiO_2的平均晶粒度为20.4 nm;N以替代型N-Ti-O、间隙型Ti-O-N(或氧化态Ti-O-N-O)的形式存在于晶格中,银以Ag0形式附着在TiO_2表面;N掺杂抑制TiO_2晶粒的生长,并抑制光生电子与空穴的复合,从而促进TiO_2对可见光的吸收;表面附Ag对TiO_2晶格没有明显影响,但在450~580 nm可见光区产生强烈的表面等离子吸收带并延长至近红外区。TiO_2及其掺杂改性后对甲基橙的光催化效果为Ag/N-TiO_2Ag/TiO_2N-TiO_2TiO_2(或Degussa P25),Ag/N-TiO_2在可见光下对甲基橙(p H=3)进行光催化降解,150 min时降解率达到95%。     

Synthesis,Characterization and Photocatalytic Studies of La,Dy-doped ZnO nanoparticles

Rare earth La Dy co-doped ZnO nanoparticles (Zn_0.98La_0.01Dy_0.01O, Zn_0.96La_0.02Dy_0.02O, Zn_0.94La_0.03Dy_0.03O, and Zn_0.92La_0.04Dy_0.04O) were synthesized by co-precipitation method at temperature of 500 °C for 2 h in air. The synthesized samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), FE-SEM/EDS and UV–Visible spectrophotometer. The prepared nanoparticles exhibit a hexagonal wurtzite structure as observed from XRD measurements. It was observed that the La Dy co- doped ZnO nanoparticles (Zn_0.98La_0.01Dy_0.01O, Zn_0.96La_0.02Dy_0.02O, Zn_0.94La_0.03Dy_0.03O, and Zn_0.92La_0.04Dy_0.04O) exhibit higher optical absorbance spectrum at 400 nm to 800 nm wavelength due to its smaller crystal size (12.2 nm) as compared to the un- doped ZnO nanoparticles (253.1 nm). The photocatalytic activity of rare earth La Dy co- doped ZnO nanoparticles were studied by performing the decomposition of methylene blue dye solution under UV light irradiation within 0–4 h. The methylene blue dye solution was considerably photodegraded by Zn_0.92La_0.04Dy_0.04O photocatalyst under UV light irradiation within 2–4 h to the efficiency of 96 %. The pseudo first order rate constant of the degradation was found to be 0.0264 S^?1. The degradation mechanisms are discussed in this work.     

Bi_2WO_6 doped with rare earth ions:Preparation,characterization and photocatalytic activity under simulated solar irradiation

Rare-earth modification Bi_2 WO_6 composites(RE/Bi_2 WO_6) were studied by experimental performance and theory computation based on the different 4 f orbits of selected rare earth elements(La,Ce,Gd,and Yb).The prepared RE/Bi_2 WO_6 was characterized by XRD,SEM/TEM,XPS,UV-vis DRS,and N_2 adsorption to learn their physical-chemical properties.Azo dye Rhodamine B(RhB) was photodegraded as a target pollutant to investigate the photocatalytic activity of prepared RE/Bi_2 WO_6 composites.The results of experiment and computation show that four rare earth elements with different electron configurations retain the phase and morphology of Bi_2 WO_6 and enhance the removal efficiency of RhB under simulated solar irradiation.The optimum doping contents are 0.01%,0.05%,0.05% and 0.01% for La-,Ce-,Gd-,and Yb-doped Bi_2 WO_6,respectively.However,light rare earth La and Ce doped composites indicate some difference in visible light adso rption capacity and mineralization on RhB co mpared with heavy rare earth Gd and Yb doped composites.Both La/Bi_2 WO_6 and Ce/Bi_2 WO_6 possess larger pore size and higher mineralization ability than Gd/Bi_2 WO_6 and Yb/Bi_2 WO_6 under the same experimental conditions while Gd/Bi_2 WO_6 and Yb/Bi_2 WO_6 show stronger red shift to the visible light due to the more 4 f electrons.The hole oxidation plays a major role in the photodegradation of RhB by all RE/Bi_2 WO_6.     

硫掺杂含钛高炉渣光催化剂性能研究

以含钛高炉渣为原料,硫脲为掺杂剂,采用高能球磨法制备了S掺杂含钛高炉渣催化剂,通过XRD、UV-vis吸收光谱、SEM等对其进行表征. 研究甲基橙溶液pH值等对可见光光催化降解甲基橙的影响. 结果表明,经过焙烧的掺硫催化剂对可见光吸收增强,吸收带边明显"红移";当pH=2时,甲基橙氧化效果最好.     

钒酸铋/二氧化钛-石墨烯宽光谱复合光催化剂的制备及性能

通过溶剂热法制备了具有可见光光催化活性的BiVO₄/TiO₂-石墨烯复合光催化剂.利用X射线粉末衍射、透射电子显微镜、紫外-可见漫反射光谱和荧光发射光谱对样品进行表征,复合光催化剂的催化活性以模拟太阳光条件下降解水溶液中亚甲基蓝来评价.结果表明:BiVO₄/TiO₂-石墨烯复合光催化剂在530-800 nm的可见光范围具有很强的吸收峰.石墨烯的引入不仅拓宽了光谱响应范围,而且使得BiVO₄和TiO₂粒子均匀地分散在石墨烯薄片上,能快速捕获并迁移电子,有效地提高了光生载流子的分离效率,从而提高其光催化活性.      

Systematic study of Nd~(3+) on structural properties of ZnO nanocomposite for biomedical applications; in-vitro biocompatibility,bioactivity, photoluminescence and antioxidant properties

Owing to the inconformity in ionic radius between Nd~(3+) and Zn~(2+), the successful incorporation of Nd~(3+) ion into the ZnO nanocrystals still remains a great challenge. In the present study various doping ratios containing 1 wt%, 5 wt%, 7 wt% and 10 wt% of Nd~(3+) doped ZnO nanoparticles(Nd/ZnO NPs) were synthesized in which a bio-layer caped the NPs. SEM/EDX analysis was performed on the ZnO and Nd/ZnO NPs. In addition, the as-synthesized NPs were characterized using X-ray diffraction(XRD), dynamic light scattering(DLS), differential reflectance spectroscopy(DRS) and photoluminescence(PL) spectroscopy.The average size of Nd(5 wt%)/ZnO NPs was in the range of 6.22 and 15 e18 nm based on XRD and SEM techniques, respectively. The measured band gap values for pure ZnO and Nd/ZnO NCs with doping ratios of 1 wt%, 5 wt%, 7 wt% and 9 wt% were equal to 3.46, 3.26, 3.05, 3.25 and 3.29, respectively. After inhalation, nanoparticles first interact with lung surfactant system and accordingly their toxic effects will appear on lungs cells such as A549 cell line. The effect of Nd/ZnO NPs to interact by human A549 cell line was evaluated by means of cell viability test. According to cell viability test the concentrations of 0.3 and 0.5 mg/mL of Nd/ZnO NPs induce a low toxicity. The present study shows that these toxic effects of Nd/ZnO NPs can be rectified by capping its surface via the addition of a bio-layer around particles in order to prevent them from interacting A549 cell line.     

Preparation and photocatalytic activity of La^3＋ and Eu^3＋ co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles： photo-assisted degradation of methylene blue

Rare earth ions La³⁺ and Eu³⁺ co-doped TiO₂ photocatalyst (La-Eu/TiO₂) was prepared by sol-gel method, and characterized by various techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), specific surface area and porosity (BET and BJH), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The photocatalytic activity of the La-Eu/TiO₂ was evaluated by the degradation of methylene blue (MB) under UV light irradiation. The catalyst had a relatively uniform particle diameter distribution in the range of 40–60 nm. When calcining at 600°C, the XRD patterns of La-Eu/TiO₂ indicated the anatase phase, while the XPS patterns showed the Ti⁴⁺, La³⁺ and Eu³⁺ ions existence. The DRS spectra showed red shift in the band-gap transition. The experimental results of MB degradation demonstrated that the photocatalytic activity of La-Eu/TiO₂ was significantly enhanced due to better separation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs.     

Effects of aluminum co-doping on photoluminescence properties of Ce³⁺-doped SiO₂ glasses

SiO2 glasses co-doped with Al3+ ions were prepared by a sol-gel method by holding 0.5% of Ce3+ ions constant and varying the Al3+ ions concentrations.Thermal stability,the structural,chemical and the optical properties of the samples were studied by using differential scanning calorimetric(DSC),thermo gravimetric analysis(TGA),X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),energy dispersive spectroscopy(EDS),UV-vis spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy(PL).The DSC and TGA of samples depicted that the presence of dopant and co-dopant decreased the endothermic peak temperature and the yield respectively.SEM images showed that the particles were in the nano-range and spherical in shape.The XRD showed that all the samples were amorphous.The UV absorption measurements indicated that the presence of Al3+ ions significantly reduced the SiO2 absorption band,increased the absorbance intensity of SiO2 and decreased the transmittance as compared to the presence of the Ce3+ ions alone.The photoluminescence results displayed an optimum increase in luminescence intensity when the ratio of Al:Ce was 10:1 and further increase in aluminum content quenched the luminous intensity.     

Enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity of samarium-doped zinc oxide nanostructures

In the present work,we have synthesized samarium doped zinc oxide nanostructures(Zn_(1-x)Sm_xO;x=0.00,0.02,0.04 and 0.06) via chemical precipitation method and studied their structural,morphological,optical and photocatalytic properties.X-ray diffraction(XRD) patterns,PL and Raman spectra results indicate that the undoped and Sm-doped ZnO nanostructures are crystallized in a hexagonal wurtzite structure.FESEM images show that the morphology of the sample changes from cubical to hexagonal nanostructures with increase in Sm~(3+)doping concentration.The EDX spectra confirm the incorporation of Sm~(3+)ion in ZnO.The influence of Sm~(3+)doping on the structure,morphology,absorption,emission and photocatalytic activity of ZnO nanostructures were investigated systematically.The addition of Sm~(3+)ion leads to a red shift in the optical energy band gap from 3.19 to 2.67 eV and hence,increases the visible light absorption ability.The presence of E_2(H) and E_1(LO) modes in microRaman spectra confirms the crystallinity and defects in the samples.The detailed photocatalytic experiments reveal that Sm-doped ZnO nanostructures show the maximum photodegradation efficiency for Methylene blue(MB) dye for x=0.04,i,e.,94.94%,under visible light irradiation.The photocatalytic efficiency improves by 6.98 times when ZnO is doped with rare earth metal ion(Sm~(3+)) and is a potential candidate for practical applications.The investigation demonstrates that as-synthesized nano-sized photocatalysts act as an efficient photocatalyst for the degradation of MB dye.