H2 evolution on Lanthanum and Carbon co-doped NaTaO3 Photocatalyst

We report a carbon-modify lanthanum doped sodium tantalum oxide powders (La-C-NaTaO3) by sol-gel process. The resultant materials are characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The X ray diffraction of La-C-NaTaO3 show a single phases with a good crystallinity and without any impurity. The samples is exactly indexed as NaTaO3 monoclinic structure with the space group P2/m. The SEM measurements give a smaller particle size of doped NaTaO3 than pure NaTaO3. The effect of dopant on the photocatalytic activity of La-C-NaTaO3 in the photocatalytic of hydrogen generation is studied and compared with pure NaTaO3. The results show that the rate of hydrogen evolution over La-C-NaTaO3 is higher as compared to that of pure NaTaO3. The enhancement of photocatalytic activity of La-C-NaTaO3 nanocrystalline is mainly due to their capability for reducing the electron hole pair recombination. The La-C-dopant is believed to play a key role in the enhancement of photocatalytic properties of La-C-NaTaO3 crystalline. Submitted: 28th September 2013; Revised: 16th February 2014; Accepted: 28th February 2014 [How to Cite: Husin, H., Mahidin, M., Zuhra, Z., Hafita, F. (2014). H2 evolution on Lanthanum and Carbon co-doped NaTaO3 Photocatalyst . Bulletin of Chemical Reaction Engineering & Catalysis, 9 (2):81-86. (doi:10.9767/bcrec.9.2.5530.81-86)] [Permalink/DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.9767/bcrec.9.2.5530.81-86