High Photocatalytic Performance of Pd/PdO‐Supported BiVO₄ Nanoparticles for Rhodamine B Degradation under Visible LED Light Irradiation

Abstract

Pd/PdO‐decorated BiVO4 nanoparticles were prepared by two‐step router: (i) monoclinic scheelite BiVO4 nanoparticles were fabricated via the co‐precipitation process in the presence of urea; (ii) Pd/PdO was decorated BiVO4 surface by the combination of by precipitation method and annealing process. The as‐synthesized catalysts were characterized by X‐ray powder diffraction (XRD) analysis, Raman spectra, X‐ray photoelectron (XPS) spectra, UV‐visible diffuse reflectance (UV‐vis DRS) spectra, and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The photocatalytic performance of Pd/PdO‐decorated BiVO4 samples exhibited excellent photodegradation of rhodamine B as well as the OH• radical generation under LED light irradiation as a comparison with the bare BiVO4. This excellent outcome is due to the reduced electron/hole recombination of Pd/PdO‐decorated BiVO4 samples, which was confirmed by PL characterization. Therefore, the fabrication of semiconductors with a combination of noble metal/oxides are good candidates for enhancement of their photocatalytic performance.

Thermal, structural and optical properties of magnetic BiFeO3 micron-particles synthesized by coprecipitation method: heterogeneous photocatalysis study under white LED irradiation

“…The photocatalytic process under irradiation of LEDs has been primarily performed using UV-LEDs. Conversely, some investigations have reported the feasibility of vis-LEDs as a new paradigm for photocatalytic applications [20][21][22][23][24].…”