STRUCTURAL, OPTICAL, AND VISIBLE-LIGHT DRIVEN PHOTACATALYTIC PROPERTIES OF Yb-DOPED BiVO4 NANOPARTICLES PREPARED VIA RAPID SONOCHEMICAL PROCESS

This work represents the synthesis and structural, morphological, and optical characterization of rare-earth Yb-doped BiVO4 materials with different Ytterbium (Yb3+) contents (0% - 5%). Yb-doped BiVO4 specimens in form of fine nanoparticles were synthesized by a rapid and facile sonochemical process. The structural and morphological characterizations were observed by X-ray diffraction technique (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Important optical properties of the prepared samples were investigated by the diffuse reflectance technique and the corresponding optical band gaps were calculated by the mean of the Kullbelka-Munk equation. From the characterized results, it is acknowledged that incorporated Yb dopant has a significant effect on the crystalline structure of BiVO4 by reducing in monoclinic phase in the pristine sample while the increasing Yb doping composition resulted in the mixed phases of monoclinic and tetragonal phases since Yb3+ ions could probably induce the stabilization of the tetragonal phase in BiVO4 material. Moreover, extensive doping with Yb3+ exhibits considerable influence on not only structural but also optical and relevant visible - driven photocatalytic properties of BiVO4 by means of the color degradation of RhB dye solution.