Study on synthesis and photocatalytic activity of novel visible light sensitive photocatalyst Ag3PO4

Silver orthophosphate nanoparticles have been synthesised by precipitation of AgNO3 and H3PO4 in presence of oleylamine and other solvents like toluene, and ethanol at room temperature. Particle sizes of silver orthophosphate nanocrystals can be controlled by adjusting the amount of water. The products were characterised by XRD, UV–Vis, FESEM and EDX. The characterisation results showed that the crystal sizes of products were 5–20 nm depending on the content of water. UV–Vis result revealed a strong light absorbance in the visible light region at 465–470 nm. Photocatalytic activities of titania and silver orthophosphate nanocrystals were tested in photocatalytic degradation of Methylene Blue (MB) in liquid phase under visible light irradiation. Samples showed very high photocatalytic activity in the degradation of Methylene Blue. After 2h of reaction, the conversion reached the value of 97%.