Study of photocatalytic properties of Ag₃PO₄ and its composites

In this work we deal with the preparation of Ag₃PO₄ powders and their composites with calcined and uncalcined hydroxyapatite, TiO₂ and Agl. Samples were prepared by precipitation, mechanochemical synthesis and impregnation. Photocatalytic efficiency of individual samples was studied by irradiation of suspensions of prepared powders with methylene blue (MB) solution and with phenol solution using simulated solar light. Photocatalytic efficiency was determined via time dependent decrease in total organic carbon (TOC) of phenol and also via monitoring the decrease of MB absorption intensity at 664 nm. The effect of sample preparation method on photocatalytic efficiency and morphology of particles was also studied. The samples were characterized also by X-ray powder diffraction method (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and back-scattered electron microscopy (BSE). (authors)