Enhancement of the visible light photocatalytic activity of heterojunction In sub(2) O sub(3) /BiVO sub(4) composites

Novel In sub(2)O sub(3)/BiVO sub(4) heterojunction composite photocatalysts with tunable In sub(2)O sub(3) content were prepared using a mild hydrothermal method. The structure, composition, and optical properties of the In sub(2)O sub(3)/BiVO sub(4) composites were determined by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface analysis, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Furthermore, photocatalytic activities of the as-prepared composites were investigated by studying the degradation of methylene blue (MB) solutions under simulated visible light irradiation ( lambda > 420 nm). It was found that the 50 % proportion of In sub(2)O sub(3) in the In sub(2)O sub(3)/BiVO sub(4) composite exhibited the highest photocatalytic performance, leading to 91 % decomposition of MB within 240 min of irradiation.