Cani Damiano, Cuyvers Timo, Pescarmona Paolo P
Centre for Surface Chemistry and Catalysis, University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Kasteelpark Arenberg 23, 3001, Heverlee, Belgium.
Chemical Engineering Group, Engineering and Technology Institute Groningen (ENTEG), University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG, Groningen, The Netherlands.
ChemSusChem. 2025 Feb 1;18(3):e202401180. doi: 10.1002/cssc.202401180. Epub 2024 Nov 7.
A series of solid solutions of indium and iron oxides with different In/Fe ratios (InFeO, with x + y = 2) were synthesized in the form of nanoparticles (diameter of ca. 30-40 nm) with the purpose of generating enhanced photocatalysts with an intermediate band gap compared to those of the monometallic oxides, InO and FeO. The materials were prepared by co-precipitation from an aqueous solution of iron and indium nitrates and extensively characterized with a combination of techniques. XRD analysis proved the formation of the desired InFeO solid solutions for Fe content in the range 5-25 mol%. UV-Vis absorption analysis showed that the substitution of In with Fe in the crystalline structure led to the anticipated gradual decrease of the band gap values compared to InO. The obtained semiconductors were tested as photocatalysts for the degradation of model organic pollutants (phenol and methylene blue) in water. Among the InFeO solid solutions, InFeO displayed the highest photocatalytic activity in the degradation of the selected probe molecules under UV and visible radiation. Remarkably, InFeO showed a significantly enhanced activity under visible light compared to monometallic indium oxide and iron oxide, and to the benchmark TiO P25. This demonstrates that our strategy consisting in engineering the band gap by tuning the composition of InFeO solid solutions was successful in improving the photocatalytic performance under visible light. Additionally, InFeO fully retained its photocatalytic activity upon reuse in four consecutive cycles.
合成了一系列具有不同铟铁比（InFeO，其中x + y = 2）的铟和铁的氧化物固溶体，其呈纳米颗粒形式（直径约为30 - 40 nm），目的是制备出与单金属氧化物InO和FeO相比具有中间带隙的增强型光催化剂。这些材料通过从铁和铟的硝酸盐水溶液中共沉淀制备，并采用多种技术进行了广泛表征。XRD分析证明，对于铁含量在5 - 25 mol%范围内，形成了所需的InFeO固溶体。紫外 - 可见吸收分析表明，在晶体结构中用铁取代铟导致带隙值与InO相比预期地逐渐降低。所制备的半导体作为光催化剂用于水中模型有机污染物（苯酚和亚甲基蓝）的降解测试。在InFeO固溶体中，InFeO在紫外光和可见光辐射下对所选探针分子的降解表现出最高的光催化活性。值得注意的是，与单金属铟氧化物和铁氧化物以及基准TiO P25相比，InFeO在可见光下显示出显著增强的活性。这表明我们通过调节InFeO固溶体的组成来设计带隙的策略成功地提高了可见光下的光催化性能。此外，InFeO在连续四个循环的再利用中完全保留了其光催化活性。
