The improved Photocatalytic Performance of Strontium Titanate (STO) Powder Induced by Lanthanum Dopants

Abstract

In this research, Lanthanum (La)-doped Strontium Titanate (STO) with the formula of Sr1-xLaxTiO3 (LSTO; x=0, 0.03, 0.05, and 0.07) powders have been successfully fabricated by co-precipitation route. The impacts of La3+ on the structural, microstructure, band-gap, and photocatalytic activity for the degradation of organic pollutants, in this case, methylene blue, under UV exposure, were reported in detail. The formation of undoped and La-doped STO samples with cubic perovskite structures was confirmed by X-ray Diffraction (XRD) results. The presence of La doping affected the microstructure morphology by producing LSTO powders with a larger specific surface area. Besides, the UV absorption of the LSTO powders was enhanced due to the narrowed band gap caused by La3+ dopants. Accordingly, an improvement in photocatalytic activity applied for the photodegradation of methylene blue solution was exhibited by the LSTO samples.

Keywords

• lanthanum-doped strontium titanate
• photocatalyst
• photodegradation
• methylene blue