Incorporation of Nanostructured ReO3 in Silica Matrix and Their Activity Toward Photodegradation of Blue Methylene

ReO 3 were prepared by thermal treatment of the macromolecular Chitosan·(ReCl 3 ) X and PSP-4-PVP·(ReCl 3 ) X precursors. The plasmon band in the visible region for the as obtained ReO 3 from their visible spectra was observed at λ max of 640 nm. The nature of the polymeric precursor is acting as a solid state template and influences the size and morphology of the metal oxides. For the first time, the photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue using ReO 3 was measured founding a moderated and high activity for ReO 3 arise from Chitosan and PSP-4-PVP precursors respectively. The inclusion of ReO 3 into SiO 2 was performed using a combined solution of the Chitosan and PVP precursors by the sol–gel method. Subsequent pyrolysis of the solid precursors Chitosan·(ReCl 3 ) X (SiO 2 ) y and PSP-4-PVP·(ReCl 3 ) X .(SiO 2 ) y give rise to the nanocomposites ReO 3 //SiO 2 . The as obtained ReO 3 nanoparticles inside SiO 2 are small as 1 nm. The ReO 3 nanoparticles are distributed uniformly inside the matrix of SiO 2 , leading to stable semi porous materials suitable for high temperature catalytic application. The composites ReO 3 /SiO 2 exhibit a moderate photocatalytic activity toward the degradation of methylene blue and similar to that of ReO 3 . Graphic Abstract