Synthesis of bismuth vanadate nanorods by hydrothermal method and study of their photocatalytic activity in photodegradation of Congo red

In this paper, Structural, optical and photocatalytic properties of bismuth vanadate nanorods were studied. The bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) nanorods were made by thermal method in the presence of PEG (Polyethylene glycol) soft template. To study the nanorods, the X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and ultraviolet– visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis) were used. The X-ray diffraction pattern were indicated that the nanorods have a monoclinic structure and the results of XRD and EDS analysis showed that there did not any impurity element in nanorods. From the FESEM image, it was found that the average diameter and length of the nanorods are 37 and 439 nm, respectively. The UV-Vis analysis showed that the optical band gap of bismuth vanadate nanorods is 2.22 eV, which is in the visible light range. The photocatalytic activity of nanorods were evaluated by photodegradation of Congo red under visible light irradiation. According to the results of this research, bismuth vanadate nanorods with monoclinic structure is a good choice for the degradation of organic matter with sunlight.