Synthesis and characterization of BiVO4 nanoparticles for environmental applications

Abstract

In the present study, a chemical precipitation method is adopted to synthesize bismuth vanadate nanoparticles. The calcination temperature dependent photocatalytic and antibacterial activities of BiVO₄ nanoparticles are examined. The structural analysis evidences the monoclinic phase of BiVO₄ nanoparticles, where the grain size increases with calcination temperature. Interestingly, BiVO₄ nanoparticles calcined at 400 °C exhibit superior photocatalytic behaviour against methylene blue dye (K = 0.02169 min⁻¹) under natural solar irradiation, which exhibits good stability for up to three cycles. The evolution of antibacterial activity studies using a well diffusion assay suggest that the BiVO₄ nanoparticles calcined at 400 °C can act as an effective growth inhibitor of pathogenic Gram-negative (P. aeruginosa & A. baumannii) and Gram-positive bacteria (S. aureus).