Abstract
β-NaYF<sub>4</sub>:Ho<sup>3+</sup>@TiO<sub>2</sub>–reduced graphene oxide (NYFH@TO–rGO) ternary composites photocatalysts were prepared via a three-step method and used for cleanup of Rhodamine B (RhB) aqueous solution under visible light irradiation. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), fluorescence spectrometries, ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-Vis DRS), electron spin resonance (ESR), and photoelectrochemical properties were used to characterize the photocatalyst. The results revealed that rGO as an excellent platform and successfully to load NYFHo@TO core–shell microcrystals. In this photocatalyst, the loading of UC microcrystals is expected to emit UV (290 nm) light after absorbing Vis (450 nm) light of the solar spectrum and the optical response of the rGO is enhanced from UV to Vis. so as to realize the visible light-driven photocatalysis of TiO<sub>2</sub>. It was found that add to rGO can efficient charge separation, extended light absorption range (red-shifted to 402.6 nm), enhanced adsorption performance, and improve photocatalytic activity. This novel tenary photocatalyst can reach decomposition rate of RhB as high as 87% after 10 h of irradiation by visible-light Xe lamp. Compared with the blank experiment, the efficiency was significantly improved. It is of great significance to design an effective solar light-driven photocatalysis in promoting environmental protection.
Highlights
Since Fujishima and Honda [1] discovered the phenomenon of photocatalytic splitting of water on a TiO2 electrode under ultraviolet (UV) light [2], TiO2 has been widely studied in areas ranging from photocatalysis [3,4,5]
The relative intensities of some of the diffraction peaks differed between the standard and the prepared products, which were indicative of differences in the degree of crystallization and morphology among the obtained products
C elemental the upper part is obviously more than the lower part, from the Figure 3a we find that the upper part of the region was covered with reduced graphene oxide (rGO), the rGO sheets below cover with NYFH@TO
Summary
Since Fujishima and Honda [1] discovered the phenomenon of photocatalytic splitting of water on a TiO2 electrode under ultraviolet (UV) light [2], TiO2 has been widely studied in areas ranging from photocatalysis [3,4,5]. Benefiting from the high specific surface area and the flexible sheet-like structure, rGO emerged as an excellent platform on which to load NYFHo@TO core–shell microcrystals to form β-NaYF4:Ho3+@TiO2–reduced graphene oxide (NYFH@TO–rGO) ternary composites. In this photocatalyst, the loading of UC microcrystals is expected to emit UV light after absorbing Vis light of the solar spectrum and the optical response of the NYFH@TO– rGO microcrystals is enhanced from UV to Vis. At the same time, rGO can inhibit the recombination of photogenerated electron–hole pairs and enhance the adsorption capacity of the photocatalyst. The photodegradation of rhodamine B (RhB) has been investigated
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