Enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity of LaMnO3 nanostructures for water purification

Abstract

Lanthanum manganite (LaMnO3), a perovskite-like oxide material, is one of the most promising and efficient photocatalysts for the degradation of organic pollutants. In this work, we report a high rate of photodegradation of aqueous methyl orange (MO) dye under visible light illumination on LaMnO3 nanoparticles prepared by the hydrothermal route. The phase formations of the obtained nanoparticles were investigated by powder X-ray diffraction analysis. The structure and nature of the chemical bonds were identified by FT-IR and Raman analysis. The morphology and core level analysis has been carried out by HRSEM, HRTEM, AFM and XPS. The optical behavior of LaMnO3 nanoparticles was analyzed by UV–Vis absorption spectroscopy, and the result suggests that LaMnO3 nanoparticles can be used as efficient photocatalysts to remove MO dye from water.