Preparation of PrCoO3 by sol-gel method and its photocatalytic properties under ultraviolet light irradiation

Abstract

Using praseodymium nitrate, cobalt acetate and citric acid as main raw materials, the PrCoO3 photocatalyst was prepared by sol-gel method. The PrCoO3 samples were characterized by thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The photocatalytic activity of PrCoO3 was tested by simulating polluted water with 10 mg/L methyl orange solution under ultraviolet light irradiation. The results show that pure PrCoO3 can be prepared by calcination in the range of 600 to 900 °C. The average particle size of PrCoO3 is about 30 μm. The photocatalytic performance of PrCoO3 is the best under the conditions of 700 °C calcination and ultraviolet light irradiation for 120 min, and the degradation rate of methyl orange (10 mg/L) can reach 98%. The PrCoO3 samples are consistent with first-order kinetics for the degradation of methyl orange. And the apparent rate constants is k = 0.0346 min−1. PrCoO3 sample shows good ultraviolet light photocatalytic activity and has a broad application prospect in the field of photocatalysis.