High surface area B-doped LaFeO3/Ag/Ag3PO4 as a Z-scheme photocatalyst for facilitate phenol degradation

The high area B-doped LaFeO3/Ag/Ag3PO4 was designed and composed by silver ammonia assisted in-situ precipitation with the complexing of glucose. Whereafter, the structure, surface morphology and specific surface area of compound were explored and analyzed in depth. It's obviously discovered that more hydroxyl radicals and Ag exist in the surface of compound, and even exposed its large specific surface area. In addition, excellent optical properties are also demonstrated, which could absorb effectively visible light and possess higher separation efficiency of photogenerated carriers. Therefore, using toxic, harmful and refractory phenol as a probe, the visible light catalytic performance of Z-scheme B-doped LaFeO3/Ag/Ag3PO4 photocatalyst was investigated thoroughly. The best phenol degradation rate is 97.06%, which was only irradiated 60 min under visible light. On the other hand, a relatively high mineralization rate is also approved, which could reach up to 87.51%. Afterwards, the photocatalytic mechanism of Z-scheme B-doped LaFeO3/Ag/Ag3PO4 compound has been excavated. The Ag elementary substance plays a key role in photocatalytic reactions for phenol degradation, which as the center of electronic medium changes the segregation pattern of photo-generated electrons and holes

Automated summary

A high activity B-doped LaFeO3/Ag/Ag3PO4 material was successfully designed and synthesized by silver ammonia assisted in-situ precipitation with glucose complexing. The material exhibited a large specific surface area and excellent optical properties, enabling efficient phenol degradation under visible light irradiation and achieving a relatively high mineralization rate. The photocatalytic mechanism of the material was investigated, providing a reference for further development of efficient visible light catalysts.