Effect of S doping on structure and properties of FeVO_4 photocatalyst

S-doped FeVO4 photocatalysts were successfully prepared by sol-gel method taking the corn stem as template and characterized with X-ray diffraction(XRD), scanning electron microscope(SEM), specific surface area(BET), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) and UV-vis absorption spectroscopy(UV-Vis). The results demonstrate that all the FVO or S/FVO photocatalysts consist of triclinic phase, S doping has great influence on morphology but little on specific surface area. XPS spectra show that S doping replaces the subsistent O, and S-Fe-O form. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated via visible-light by photocatalytic oxidation of methyl orange(MO). The results of photocatalytic degradation to methyl orange show that S doping can improve the photocatalytic activity and the MO decoloration rate is more 49% than that of pure FeVO4 when S doping is 6%.