Preparation and photocatalytic activity of Y-doped Bi 2 O 3

Y3+ doped Bi2O3 photocatalysts with enhanced photocatalytic activity were synthesized via thermal decomposition of molecular precursor at 500 °C and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive analysis of X-rays (EDX), ultraviolet–visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV–vis DRS), and photoluminescence spectra (PL). The XRD results indicated that the introduction of Y3+ ions can stabilize the phase of Bi2O3. The DRS results indicated that the doping of Y3+ increased the visible light absorption ability of Bi2O3 and red-shifts appeared when compared with pure Bi2O3. Their photocatalytic activities were evaluated through the photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange. The results showed that an appropriate concentration of yttrium dopant can enhance the photocatalytic performance of Bi2O3 due to the strong visible light absorption and the efficient inhibition of the recombination of photogenerated electron–hole pairs. The active species trapping experiments indicated · O 2 − is the main active species in the photocatalytic reaction. Recycling experiments demonstrated that Y-doped Bi2O3 has strong photostability and recyclability and it will be a promising photocatalyst for the photodegradation of organic dyes in water.