High photocatalytic activity for the degradation of rhodamine B in water

In this work, La-doped bismuth titanate (Bi4-xLaxTi3O12) ceramics were prepared using a solid-state reaction method. The structures, morphologies and vibrational modes of the obtained ceramics were characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. The prepared Bi4-xLaxTi3O12 showed higher photocatalytic rhodamine B (RhB) degradation in water under UV light irradiation than the pure materials (Bi4Ti3O12). The enhanced photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the presence of O-Ti-O and the efficient separation of electron-hole pairs and/or to the particle size. The results of this work show that multiple photocatalysts can degrade RhB. Moreover, RhB was eliminated in an aqueous solution via the photocatalytic activity of La-doped bismuth titanate with different dopant loadings, based on the activation of these powders by UV-Vis light irradiation. Photocatalytic tests showed that the degradation of RhB was higher for Bi4Ti3O12 doped with 0.75 of La, demonstrating approximately 96% efficiency after 200 min of UV irradiation.