Electronic Structure of Visible Light-Driven Photocatalyst δ-Bi₁₁VO₁₉ Nanoparticles Synthesized by Thermal Plasma

Size confinement for tailoring of electronic structures can in principle be explored for enhancement of photocatalytic properties. In the present work, vanadium-doped bismuth oxide nanoparticles, with an average particle size of 36 nm, are synthesized for the first time, using the thermal plasma method, in large scale with high yield to explore for photocatalytic applications. The electronic and crystallographic structures of the sample are studied experimentally and theoretically. Systematic investigations of the electronic structure of the fluorite type cubic phase of Bi₁₁VO₁₉ nanoparticles are reported for the first time. Enhancement is observed in the photocatalytic activity as compared to other delta phases of bismuth vanadate. The valence band is found to comprise mainly of O 2p states, whereas the conduction band arises from V 3d states giving rise to a band gap value of 2.26 eV. Absence of excess O in δ-Bi₂O₃ results in shrinking of the band gap because of O 2p, Bi 6s and 6p states from the surrounding atoms at doping sites. Bi₁₁VO₁₉ nanoparticles show an efficient visible light absorption and exhibit excellent photodegradation properties of methylene blue solution under visible light irradiation.