One-pot synthesis and improved photocatalytic performance of Ag10Si4O13/N–CeO2 composites

Novel Ag 10 Si 4 O 13 /N–CeO 2 composite photocatalysts were synthesized by a facile one-pot method. XRD, SEM, EDS, and UV–Vis DRS were employed to characterize the structures of the samples. Moreover, the degradation activity of methyl violet (MV) was used to measure the photocatalytic performances of Ag 10 Si 4 O 13 , N–CeO 2 , and the Ag 10 Si 4 O 13 /N–CeO 2 composites. It was found that ASO-10 (the Ag 10 Si 4 O 13 /N–CeO 2 composite with 10 mg N–CeO 2 ) showed the highest photocatalytic activity in the degradation of MV, and the enhanced photocatalytic performance is attributed to an improvement in the separation efficiency of photoproduced electron–hole pairs. Effects of operational parameters, such as initial pH, catalyst dosage, initial dye concentration, anions and cations, have also been considered for better practical applications. In addition, the photocatalytic mechanism of the Ag 10 Si 4 O 13 /N–CeO 2 composites is also proposed.