Strong interfacial charge transfer between hausmannite manganese oxide and alumina for efficient photocatalysis

摘要

Well crystalline manganese oxide(Mn_(3)O_(4))nanoparticles anchored on gamma alumina(γ-Al_(2)O_(3))have been successfully tailored via a proficient and cost effective chemical process as an efficient material for photo catalysis.XRD indicated the composite formation ofγ-Al_(2)O_(3) and hausmannite structure of Mn_(3)O_(4).SEM and TEM revealed that hetero structure of Mn_(3)O_(4)/γ-Al_(2)O_(3) exhibits an amalgam of aggregated nanoparticles and nanorods.XPS demonstrated the chemical states of binary nanocomposite.The band gap tuning has been performed withγ-Al_(2)O_(3) nanoparticles by assimilating hausmannite Mn_(3)O_(4) particles into flower like microstructure of Al_(2)O_(3).The photoluminescence spectra affirmed the enhancement in charge separation in Mn_(3)O_(4)/γ-Al_(2)O_(3) binary hybrid photocatalyst.The band gap becomes narrow with the increase in concentrations of Mn_(3)O_(4).The narrowing of band gap is concorded with crystalline domains of primary aggregated particles.To elucidate the mechanism of the photocatalytic activity linear sweep voltammetry was performed.The results showed that Mn_(3)O_(4)/γ-Al_(2)O_(3) nanocomposite revealed the enhancement in current density as compared to pureγ-Al_(2)O_(3) which confirmed the electron transfer from Mn_(3)O_(4) toγ-Al_(2)O_(3) through the interfacial potential gradient in conduction bands.The optimum concentration of 6.0%Mn_(3)O_(4)/γ-Al_(2)O_(3) for hybrid structure showed an excellent photocatalytic activity under visible light due to narrow band gap energy.High degree distribution of Mn_(3)O_(4) nano architects overlying onγ-Al_(2)O_(3) induces a significant synergic effect betweenγ-Al_(2)O_(3) and hausmannite phase of manganese oxide(Mn_(3)O_(4)).This strong interfacial contact betweenγ-Al_(2)O_(3) and Mn_(3)O_(4) endures the quick transfer of photo generated charge carriers across interface.