Enhanced photoluminescence, optical, structural properties of ZrO2-incorporated Sm2O3:Co3O4 nanocomposite and their applications in photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue

摘要

In this study, a novel efficient ZrO2-decorated core-shell nanocomposites of Sm2O3@Co3O4 were synthesized for photoluminescence and photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue under visible light irradiation. The enhanced photoluminescence of the as-synthesized irregular spherical nanoparticles of ZrO2-Sm2O3@Co3O4 attributed to the suppression of charge carrier recombination and separation of photoexcited electron-hole pairs by the addition of Zr4+ ion as dopant. Rhombohedral crystal phase of the nanocomposites exhibited redshift of optical absorptivity and compared with core shell of Sm2O3@Co3O4 nanocomposites, upon excitation (lambda(excitation) = 310 nm) nanocomposite showed emission intensities at 455.3 nm, 497.1 nm and 630.3 nm.The photocatalytic activity of ZrO2-Sm2O3@Co3O4 nanocomposite under visible light irradiation is due to surface plasmonic effect and interaction between Zr4+ and Sm2O3, Co3O4 nanoparticles. However, the degradation efficiency of the catalysts decreased upon further increasing the amount of dopant due to the recombination of holes and photoexcited electrons.