Photocatalytic performance of ferric vanadate (FeVO4) nanoparticles synthesized by hydrothermal method

In this study, Ferric vanadate nanoparticles (FeVO4-NPs) were synthesized by a facile solution growth single-pot autoclave hydrothermal method. The as-synthesized powder was extensively characterized by XRD, SEM, EDS, XPS, DRS, FT-IR, BET and PL spectroscopy for physicochemical properties. The average particles size of nanoparticles was found to be 80 nm to 0.12 μm. The photocatalytic response of the FeVO4 catalyst was examined for the decomposition of Methylene Blue (MB) dye solution under visible light. The photoluminescence spectrum study revealed the potential of FeVO4-NPs in the red region of visible light. FeVO4-NPs efficiently catalyze reaction initiator (H2O2 ~ 0.05 ml dose) to generate strong OH• radical with augmented photocatalytic degradation performance i.e. 98.74% in 180 min. Various factors such as Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) loading amount as an initiator (special case), dye absorption, stability and reusability were discussed critically. The photo-induced degradation activity was greatly enhanced for low initiator concentrations. This work is helpful for rapid and low-cost preparation of FeVO4-NPs for Fenton-like photocatalytic degradation of the water pollutants.