ISSN 0004-881X

Photocatalytic Activity of Manganese-Doped ZnO Nanocrystalline Powders

by Takuya Tsuzuki*, Zoe Smith, Andrew Parker, Rongliang He, Xungai Wang

Centre for Material and Fibre Innovation, Institute for Technology Research and Innovation, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC 3217, Australia

Abstract

ZnO nanocrystalline powders doped with up to 5 at% manganese were synthesized and their photocatalytic activity was studied. Doped ZnO powders were prepared using a sol-gel process. The crystal structure and grain size of the particles were characterized by X-ray diffractometry and optical properties were studied using UV-Vis spectroscopy. The photoactivity of undoped and doped ZnO nanocrystalline powders was evaluated by monitoring the photo-bleaching of the aqueous solutions of Rhodamine B dye in the presence of ZnO under simulated sunlight. The results showed that up to 3 at% manganese were successfully doped into the nanocrystalline ZnO and that manganese-doping reduced the photocatalytic activity of ZnO.

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