A review on monoclinic metal molybdate photocatalyst for environmental remediation

UV-light-responsive Ag/TiO2/PVA nanocomposite for photocatalytic degradation of Cr, Ni, Zn, and Cu heavy metal ions

The rapid growth of industrialization has led to the uncontrolled pollution of the environment, and rapid action is needed. This study synthesized Ag/TiO2/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nano photocatalyst for promising light-derived photocatalytic removal of heavy metal ions. The design of experiment (DOE) was used to study the effect of important factors (pH, reaction time, and photocatalyst dosage) to maximize the final performance of the photocatalyst. In the optimized condition, the Ag/TiO2/PVA nano-photocatalyst removed more than 94% of Cr6+ in 180 min, and the efficiency was more than 70% for Cu2+, Zn2+, and Ni2+ metal ions. The adsorption of the heavy metal ions on the photocatalyst was described well with the Langmuir isotherm, while the pseudo-second-order linear kinetic model fitted with the experimental data. The nano-photocatalyst's stability was confirmed after maintaining its performance for five successive runs. The enhanced photocatalytic activity for the heavy metal ions removal can be attributed to the presence of metallic silver nanoparticles (electron transfer and plasmonic fields mechanisms) and PVA, which delayed the recombination of electron-hole. The synthesized ternary Ag/TiO2/PVA nano-photocatalyst showed promising performance for the elimination of heavy metal ions and can be used for environmental remediation purposes.

Decoration of Ag nanoparticles on CoMoO4 rods for efficient electrochemical reduction of CO2

Hydrothermal and photoreduction/deposition methods were used to fabricate Ag nanoparticles (NPs) decorated CoMoO4 rods. Improvement of charge transfer and transportation of ions by making heterostructure was proved by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements. Linear sweep voltammetry results revealed a fivefold enhancement of current density by fabricating heterostructure. The lowest Tafel slope (112 mV/dec) for heterostructure compared with CoMoO4 (273 mV/dec) suggested the improvement of electrocatalytic performance. The electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction was performed on an H-type cell. The CoMoO4 electrocatalyst possessed the Faraday efficiencies (FEs) of CO and CH4 up to 56.80% and 19.80%, respectively at  - 1.3 V versus RHE. In addition, Ag NPs decorated CoMoO4 electrocatalyst showed FEs for CO, CH4, and C2H6 were 35.30%, 11.40%, and 44.20%, respectively, at the same potential. It is found that CO2 reduction products shifted from CO/CH4 to C2H6 when the Ag NPs deposited on the CoMoO4 electrocatalyst. In addition, it demonstrated excellent electrocatalytic stability after a prolonged 25 h amperometric test at  - 1.3 V versus RHE. It can be attributed to a synergistic effect between the Ag NPs and CoMoO4 rods. This study highlights the cooperation between Ag NPs on CoMoO4 components and provides new insight into the design of heterostructure as an efficient, stable catalyst towards electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 to CO, CH4, and C2H6 products.

Novel electrospun bead-like Ag2MoO4 nanofibers coated on Ni foam for visible light-driven heterogeneous photocatalysis and high-performance supercapacitor electrodes

Novel Ag2MoO4 nanocomposite fibers were designed to enhance the photocatalytic response and supercapacitor performance of MoO3 grown via the sol-gel electrospinning technique. The Ag2MoO4 nanocomposite fibers exhibit a high specific surface area of 49.3 m2 g-1 comprising nanobeads that aggregate in the fibrous structure. The photodegradation efficiency of Ag2MoO4 was evaluated as 62% under visible light irradiation which improved to 71% with heterogeneous photocatalysis. The Ag2MoO4@Ni foam exhibited a low Rct of 19.6 Ω, and an enhanced specific capacitance of 1445 F g-1 was obtained at 1 A g-1, with 93% of its initial capacitance remaining after 5000 cycles. In addition, the Ag2MoO4//activated carbon asymmetric supercapacitor possesses an excellent energy density of 76.6 W h kg-1 at 743.2 W kg-1 and a noteworthy cycling durability of 91% after 5000 cycles. Our findings demonstrate that the electrospun Ag2MoO4@Ni foam is an important and inexpensive electrode material for supercapacitor applications and visible light-driven heterogeneous photocatalysis, drawing on the synergic effects of Ag and Mo to exhibit much better performance.

Coupling of Nd doping and oxygen-rich vacancy in CoMoO4@NiMoO4 nanoflowers toward advanced supercapacitors and photocatalytic degradation

In this paper, we successfully prepared rare earth element-doped 0.8% Nd-CoMoO4@NiMoO4 nanoflowers with a large specific surface area using the sol-gel method for the first time. In the experiment, we added a structure-directing agent to successfully assemble the nanosheets into a three-dimensional ordered micro-flower shape. By using the strategy of forming a flower-shaped morphology with a structure-directing agent and doping Nd elements to generate oxygen vacancies, the problems of the collapse of the active material structure and slow reaction kinetics were solved. Through relevant electrochemical performance tests, it was found that when the rare earth element Nd was doped at a concentration of 0.8%, the material exhibited exceptional specific capacitance (2387 F g-1 at 1 A g-1) and cycling stability (99.3% after 10 000 cycles at 5 A g-1). These performance characteristics far surpassed those of the other synthesized products. We assembled 0.8% Nd-CoMoO4@NiMoO4 with hydrophilic CNTs into an asymmetric device, 0.8% Nd-CoMoO4@NiMoO4//CNTs. This device exhibited high specific capacitance (262 F g-1 at 1 A g-1) and cycling stability (99.2% after 3000 cycles), with a good energy storage effect. In addition, 0.8% Nd-CoMoO4@NiMoO4 has a low band gap, which broadens the absorption range of the product and improves the utilization rate of visible light. The photocatalyst showed good degradation efficiency (all exceeding 96%) and cycling stability (96%) for all four dyes. This paper provides a new strategy and method for preparing doped polymetallic mixtures, which has potential application value.

White-light emission in Yb3+/Er3+/Tm3+- and Yb3+/Er3+/Tm3+/Ho3+-dopedα-NiMoO4nanoparticles

Yb³⁺/Er³⁺/Tm³⁺- and Yb³⁺/Er³⁺/Tm³⁺/Ho³⁺-dopedα-NiMoO₄nanoparticles were synthesized using a microwave hydrothermal method and studied for white-light emission under 980 nm laser diode excitation. White upconversion (UC) light was successfully obtained with the appropriate control of blue, green, and red emissions by successfully tuning the Er³⁺and Ho³⁺concentrations in Yb³⁺/Er³⁺/Tm³⁺- and Yb³⁺/Er³⁺/Tm³⁺/Ho³⁺-dopedα-NiMoO₄, respectively. In addition, the white color emission was shown by the CIE chromaticity coordinates of samples. The energy transfer mechanisms are explained in detail based on the emission spectra and pump power density-dependent UC luminescence intensity in rare earth (Yb³⁺/Er³⁺/Tm³⁺and Yb³⁺/Er³⁺/Tm³⁺/Ho³⁺)-dopedα-NiMoO₄nanoparticles. The results indicate that Yb³⁺/Er³⁺/Tm³⁺- and Yb³⁺/Er³⁺/Tm³⁺/Ho³⁺-dopedα-NiMoO₄nanoparticles can be good candidates for white-light devices.