Emerging Contaminant Remediation over Cauliflower-Like Bi۴V۲O۱۱ Nanophotocatalyst: Sono-Solvothermal Design

In this study, the cauliflower-like Bi۴V۲O۱۱nanophotocatalyst has been prepared by a sono-solvothermalmethod to degrade the tetracycline-HCl as a kind of antibioticpollutant under simulated sunlight. The obtained sample has beencharacterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), and field emissionscanning electron microscopy (FESEM) analyses. Moreover, theresults of reactor tests exhibited that the remediation percentage(adsorption + degradation) of ۵۰ mg/L tetracycline-HCl overBi۴V۲O۱۱ nanophotocatalyst was almost ۸۰% with ۱ g/L catalyst andafter ۱۲۰ photodegradation process. The good photocatalyticactivity of this material can be attributed to its suitable band gap,which could be activated in the range of sun light and consequentlyrelease active species in the solution, the decrease of electron andhole recombination resulting from the well crystallization, thepresence of the ultrasound energy and the increase of the dispersion,which increased the number of available active sites