The effect of the preparation method of Nb₂O₅ oxide influences the performance of the photocatalytic activity

In this paper, we present the experimental results of the photocatalytic properties evaluation of the niobium pentoxide Nb₂O₅ semiconductor oxide and its performance in processes photoinduced of Rhodamine B and Atrazine degradation, under visible light irradiation. The sample Nb₂O₅ photocatalysts were synthesized via pechini method. The nanoparticles structure of the samples was studied by X-ray diffraction, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller, Raman spectroscopy, UV-Vis and scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The increase in the calcination temperature during the synthesis resulted in enhanced crystallization, but decreased mesoporosity of the samples. (orig.)