The effect of ethylene glycol and sodium dicalcyl sulfate on the structural and photocatalytic properties of BiFeO3 nanopaticles

In this study, the effect of surfactant on the structural and photocatalytic properties of bismuth ferrite made (BiFeO3) by hydrothermal method at a temperature of 180 °C and a concentration of 4 M was investigated. The surfactants studied in this paper are ethylene glycol and sodium dodecyl sulfate. The results of diffraction pattern analysis showed that the samples have a rhombic perovskite structure distorted with space group R3c. Also, high purity bismuth ferrite was made at 180 °C and 4M concentration without the presence of surfactant. FESEM results showed that the particle size decreased with the presence of surfactant. The optical and photocatalytic properties of the samples were also investigated by UV-Visible analysis. The results showed that the amount of optical gap increased in the presence of surfactant and was recorded in the range of 2.7-2.8 eV for these samples. The photocatalytic properties of the samples were also investigated in Congo red at a concentration of 10 ppm. The results showed that ferrite bismuth made in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate had the most damage.