A high efficient photocatalyst Ag3VO4/TiO2/graphene nanocomposite with wide spectral response

Great efforts have been made to develop efficient visible light activated photocatalysts in recent years. In this work, Ag3VO4/TiO2/graphene nanocomposite as a wide spectrum responsive photocatalyst was prepared first by a two-step process, which exhibited obviously increased visible light absorption and photocatalytic activity in degradation of organic pollutants including methyl orange and Rhodamine B, compared with Ag3VO4/TiO2 and TiO2/GR nanocomposites. For Ag3VO4/TiO2/graphene nanocomposite, the introduction of graphene contributed to the uniform dispersion of Ag3VO4 and TiO2 nanoparticles on graphene sheets. The capacity of graphene in storing and shuttling electrons and the formation of heterojunction between Ag3VO4 and TiO2 facilitated together the enhancement of efficiency in the separation of photogenerated electron–hole pairs. Based on the results of photoelectrochemical measurement and the detection of active species in photocatalytic degradation process, the transfer of photogenerated carriers and photocatalytic degradation mechanism on Ag3VO4/TiO2/graphene nanocomposite were proposed and discussed in detail.

In this work, Ag3VO4/TiO2/graphene nanocomposite as a wide spectrum responsive photocatalyst was prepared first by a two-step process, which exhibited obviously increased visible light absorption and photocatalytic activity in degradation of organic pollutants. The transfer of photogenerated charges and photocatalytic mechanism for degradation of organic pollutants on Ag3VO4/TiO2/graphene were proposed and discussed in detail.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slideHighlights
► Ag3VO4/TiO2/graphene nanocomposite performs high photocatalytic activity.
► Graphene plays an important role in the enhancement of its photocatalytic activity.
► Transfer of photogenerated carriers and photocatalytic mechanism on samples are discussed.
► Our research presents a new idea for the design of efficient composite photocatalyst.