Facile synthesis of CeO2-graphene oxide composites with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic performance

Highlights: • A series of CeO₂-GO photocatalysts were successfully synthesized. • Obtained materials show potential application prospects in photocatalysis. • Suitable weight ratio of GO to CeO₂ is necessary to optimize the performance. • Higher electrocatalytic activity accords to higher photocatalytic activity. -- Abstract: A series of CeO₂-graphene oxide (CeO₂-GO) composites were systematically prepared and compared for the visible-light photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB). The experimental results show that the as-prepared CeO₂-GO (5.0 wt%) composite exhibits superior photocatalytic activity as compared to pure CeO₂. An optimum weight ratio of GO to CeO₂ not only causes a decrease in particle size of CeO₂, but also leads to an increase in BET specific surface areas and favors an effective separation of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs, which should be responsible for the enhanced photocatalytic performance. More importantly, there is a direct correlation between the electrocatalytic activity of CeO₂-GO and its photocatalytic activity for the visible-light photocatalytic degradation of MB. This fundamental research will provide guideline for exploring of highly efficient photocatalysts with many potential applications in future.