Preparation and photocatalytic properties of DyCoO3 by sol-gel method.

Using Dy₂O₃, C₄H₆CoO₄·4H₂O, C₆H₈O₇·H₂O and HNO₃ as the main raw materials, DyCoO₃ was successfully prepared by sol-gel method. The DyCoO₃ were characterized by TG-DSC, XRD, SEM and FT-IR. Using azo dye methyl orange solution as simulated wastewater, the degradation activity of DyCoO₃ under UV irradiation was studied by changing the synthesis temperature and illumination time. The results show that the pure DyCoO₃ can be prepared from 750 °C to 1000 °C, DyCoO₃ particles were relatively uniform with average grain size of 2–3 μm. The photocatalytic activity of DyCoO₃ sample calcined at 800 °C was the best. When DyCoO₃ photocatalytic degradation of 10 mg/L methyl orange for 60 min, the degradation rate was close to 100%. This shows that DyCoO₃ is a new type of photocatalyst with high efficiency, which lays a foundation for the application of wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]