Facile Synthesis and Enhanced Photocatalytic Properties of La2O3/SrSn(OH)6 Nanorods

Background: The efficient removal of the environmental organic pollutants using the photocatalytic technology catalyzed by the semiconductors has attracted great research interest in recent years. La2O3/SrSn(OH)6 nanorods show enhanced photo-catalytic activity towards crystal violet (CV). Objective: The aim is to obtain La2O3/SrSn(OH)6 nanorods by a simple hydrothermal route using lanthanum acetate and SrSn(OH)6 nanorods, and research the photo-catalytic properties for the CV degradation. Methods: La2O3/SrSn(OH)6 nanorods were obtained by a hydrothermal route using lanthanum acetate and SrSn(OH)6 nanorods and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), photoluminescence (PL) and photo-catalytic experiments. Results: The composite nanorods are comprised of hexagonal SrSn(OH)6 and cubic La2O3 phases. Some nanoscale particles attach to the surface of the nanorods with the diameter and length of about 100 nm and longer than 1 μm, respectively. La2O3/SrSn(OH)6 nanorods show lower band gap value than that of the SrSn(OH)6 nanorods. The photocatalytic reaction rate constant for the CV degradation using 15wt.%-La2O3/SrSn(OH)6 nanorods is 3 times higher than that of the pure nanorods. Conclusion: La2O3/SrSn(OH)6 nanorods possess good reusability and stability for the CV removal. The photo-catalytic activity for the CV removal of the SrSn(OH)6 nanorods can be greatly enhanced by the La2O3.