InVO4 microspheres: Preparation, characterization and visible-light-driven photocatalytic activities

New types of visible-light-driven semiconductor photocatalysts for the applications of environmental improvement and solar energy conversion have received much attention. In this study, a novel visible-light-driven InVO 4 photocatalyst was successfully synthesized by a facile additive-free hydrothermal method. The product is 3D spheric structure and well-crystallized. Pt loading plays a key role in this system. Pt nanocrystals on the particle surface not only act as charge collectors and transporters but also produce much more active sites. The Pt–InVO 4 photocatalyst exhibited excellent visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity that reach the ciprofloxacin (CIP) degradation ratio of 98.2% and H 2 production rate of 9.76   μmol   h −1   g −1 with methanol as the sacrifice reagent.