Experimental insights on the synthesis and characteristics of Fe1−xBixVO4 photocatalysts for efficient environmental and electrical applications

Abstract

In this study, polycrystalline Fe1−xBixVO4 (0.0 ≤ x ≤ 1.0) photocatalysts were synthesized hydrothermally. The as-produced photocatalysts' morphology, crystal structure, chemical content, optical bandgap energy, electrochemical behavior, and interfacial characteristics were measured using the XRD, SEM, EDX, FTIR, XPS, UV–Vis-DRS, BET, and PL characterizations. The photocatalysis investigations were conducted to see whether the poisonous crystal violet (CV) dye could be decomposed over the Fe1−xBixVO4 composite. The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) nature of Bi3+ can markedly raise the level of sensitivity to visible light, which would enhance the photocatalytic activity. By raising the electron population in Fe1−xBixVO4, the Schottky barrier that SPR produces at the interface between Bi3+ and FeVO4 increases the separation effectiveness of photoinduced charges. Various factors affecting the photocatalytic degradation of CV dye were examined in order to optimize the parameters. According to a radical trapping experiment, superoxide (O2¯) radicals are the most active species in the degradation of the anionic CV dye. In comparison to FeVO4 and BiVO4, these findings indicate that the Fe1−xBixVO4 composite possesses excellent photocatalytic and antibacterial activities. This work presents a novel approach to boosting light absorption, which encourages the development of effective photocatalysts for real-world uses. To observe the potential for additional applications, the antimicrobial and electrical properties of Fe1−xBixVO4 composites were also studied, and they exhibited good antimicrobial as well as electrical responses.