Abstract
A simple, cost-effective, and facile solvothermal approach has been adopted to synthesize mesoporous CeO2 nanostructures with varying La-doping (2, 4, and 6 mol%) concentrations. Photocatalytic and antibacterial performances are investigated against the inactivation of Escherichia coli and Bacillus licheniformis bacteria cells. Structural and microstructural characterizations of La-doped CeO2 nanostructures are performed by analyzing X-ray diffraction (XRD) data employing the Rietveld refinement method, scanning electron (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) spectra. Among three doped samples, the 4 mol% La-doped CeO2 (LCe4) has exhibited high oxygen and Ce3+ concentrations, high microstrain, small crystallite size, and lowest band gap energy, as are revealed by the analysis of XPS, UV–VIS absorption spectra, photoluminescence (PL) spectra, and Rietveld refinement result. The LCe4 sample with the highest number of oxygen vacancies and high surface area shows superior photocatalytic activity (∼95% Rhodamin B (RhB) degradation in 130 min, ∼70% Methylene Blue (MB) degradation within 30 min, and ∼95% phenol degradation in 180 min under solar radiation). It shows a striking photo-disinfection effect and enhanced antibacterial activity (almost identical to a pure drug) against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria under visible light irradiation. This novel disinfection and catalytic property of the LCe4 sample is attributed to the mesoporous structure of materials and surface activity, which lowers the electron-hole recombination rate and transports more photogenerated electrons and holes. The nanostructured mesoporous LCe4 material has been used as an effective visible light-activated photocatalyst and photo disinfection for treating wastewater containing organic dyes and gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria.
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