Photocatalytic degradation of Basic Blue 41 dye under visible light over SrTiO3/Ag3PO4 hetero-nanostructures

Abstract

n an attempt to develop nanostructured photocatalysts with high performance, SrTiO3/Ag3PO4 hetero-nanostructures were successfully fabricated. The formed binary heterojunctions were composed of SrTiO3 nanotubes prepared using liquid-phase deposition, and Ag3PO4 nanoparticles prepared using a sol–gel method. Synthesis details, including morphology, structure, and optical properties of the prepared photocatalysts, were characterized and comparatively discussed. The results showed that at an optimal ratio of SrTiO3 to Ag3PO4 (20–80), the photocatalytic degradation of Basic Blue 41 under 80-min visible light irradiation is the maximum amount of 99%, which is about 4.4 and 1.5 times higher than that of pristine SrTiO3 nanorods and Ag3PO4 nanoparticles, respectively. It can be due to the synergistic effect of two materials that provide high light absorption and charge carriers’ separation. Finally, a detailed possible mechanism for enhancing the photocatalytic activity of the SrTiO3/Ag3PO4 hetero-nanostructures was proposed