Abstract
Composite systems were prepared by doping NaYF4 (NYF) with lanthanide cations (Yb3+, Er3+, Tm3+), TiO2, and gold nanoparticles to exploit the light conversion properties of NYF and its possible impact on the photocatalytic activity of the composites. The composites were synthesized via solvothermal crystallization and the obtained structures were anatase TiO2, hexagonal NYF, and gold nanoparticles of 5–7 nm. The presence of NYF enhanced the photoactivity of TiO2 towards Rhodamine B degradation under UV irradiation, while it decreased its performance under visible light. The presence of Au was beneficial when visible light was applied for the degradation experiments. The reason behind the enhanced activity was the fluorescence of NYF at 400 nm that was the most intense for the composites that did not contain gold. The NYF-based samples also showed signs of up-conversion when 900 nm was the excitation light source, highlighting the potential of this material for photocatalytic applications that utilize the full (UV–IR) light spectrum.
Highlights
Considerable research is currently focused on the most widely studied and used semiconductor photocatalyst, titanium dioxide (TiO2) [1], which is the most promising candidate due to its improved photo catalytic performance [2]
Titanium dioxide has been utilized as a photocatalyst [9] starting from the ’70s. It can be used for sterilization, wastewater treatment, and for the photocatalytic oxidation of organic pollutants or other contam inants such as pesticides, drug residues, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, various heavy metals or even arsenic [10]
The morphological properties were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM)
Summary
Considerable research is currently focused on the most widely studied and used semiconductor photocatalyst, titanium dioxide (TiO2) [1], which is the most promising candidate due to its improved photo catalytic performance [2]. It is naturally occurring, non-toxic, chemi cally-, thermally- and photostable, has excellent electronic, optic and catalytic properties, and is affordable [3]. Titanium dioxide has been utilized as a photocatalyst [9] starting from the ’70s. TiO2 can only be excited efficiently by UV photons, which limits its visible light applicability. Demand has arisen to extend its excitability to the visible light range and/or to increase the charge separation efficiency [11]
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