Preparation of Ce3+ doped Bi2O3 hollow needle-shape with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity

Ce3+ doped Bi2O3 hollow needle-shape with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity was successfully prepared via the method of chemical precipitation using Bi(NO3)center dot 5H(2)O and Ce(NO3)(3)center dot 6H(2)O as the source of bismuth and cerium, HNO3 as solvent and NaOH as precipitants, respectively and after calcination at 500 degrees C for 2 h. The morphology and elemental composition, crystal form, purity and specific surface area of the hollow needle Bi2O3 were characterized by SEM-EDS, XRD, BET and FT-IR. The photocatalytic properties of the as-obtained samples were measured by UV-vis diffuse reflection spectroscopy and photochemical reactor. As a result, the obtained Bi2O3 hollow needle-shape doped with 5 wt% Ce shows good morphology, alpha-phase, stronger absorbent for visible light and good photocatalytic property. Under the simulated visible light of 300W, the photodegradation rate of tetracycline over HNB-Ce can reach to 89.1%, which is higher than that of commercial Bi2O3 nanoparticles and Bi2O3 hollow needle-shape. (C) 2019 Chinese Society of Rare Earths. Published by Elsevier B.V.