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US 2026/0233201 A1Published application
Semiconductor material and method of photocatalytic degradation using the semiconductor material
AssigneeImam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University
InventorImen MASSOUDI
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Abstract
A semiconductor material including tin oxide, bismuth, and zinc is provided. The tin oxide is doped with the bismuth and the zinc. The bismuth is present in an amount of 1 to 5 wt. % based on a total weight of the semiconductor material and the zinc is present in an amount of 1 to 5 wt. % based on the total weight of the semiconductor material. The tin oxide is in the form of a tetragonal phase having a crystallite size of 15 to 25 nm.
Claims19
1:
- A semiconductor material, comprising:
- tin oxide;
- bismuth;
- and
- zinc,
- wherein the tin oxide is doped with the bismuth and the zinc,
- wherein the bismuth is present in an amount of 1 to 5 weight percent (wt. %) based on a total weight of the semiconductor material,
- wherein the zinc is present in an amount of 1 to 5 wt. % based on the total weight of the semiconductor material, and
- wherein the tin oxide is in the form of a tetragonal phase having a crystallite size of 15 to 25 nm.
6 more elements
2:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the bismuth is present in an amount of 2 to 4 wt. % based on the total weight of the semiconductor material.
3:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the zinc is present in an amount of 2 to 4 wt. % based on the total weight of the semiconductor material.
4:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor material has a crystallite size of 17 to 21 nm.
5:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor material has a unit cell volume of 72.05 to 72.15 Å3.
6:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor material has a band gap of 3 to 3.1 eV.
7:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor material has a dielectric constant of 1800 to 2200 at a frequency of 50 Hz.
8:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor material is made by a process, comprising:
- dissolving a tin salt and a zinc salt in a first organic solvent to form a first solution;
- dissolving a bismuth salt in a second organic solvent to form a second solution;
- mixing the first solution and the second solution and adding a base to form a precipitate;
- calcinating the precipitate at a first temperature of 350 to 450° C. for 30 to 90 minutes;
- and
- calcinating the precipitate at a second temperature of 550 to 650° C. for 1 to 3 hours to form the semiconductor material.
4 more elements
9:
- A method of photocatalytic degradation, comprising:
- contacting the semiconductor material of claim 1 with a solution comprising one or more pollutants;
- irradiating the solution;
- and
- degrading the one or more pollutants in the solution.
2 more elements
10:
- The method of claim 9, wherein the one or more pollutants are selected from a group consisting of Congo red, imidacloprid, and malachite green.
11:
- The method of claim 9, wherein the irradiating occurs for 5 to 70 minutes.
12:
- The method of claim 9, wherein the semiconductor material has a photocatalytic efficiency of 70 to 80% based on an initial concentration of the one or more pollutants.
13:
- The method of claim 9, wherein the semiconductor material has an adsorption activity of 25 to 30% based on an initial concentration of the one or more pollutants.
14:
- The method of claim 9, further comprising:
- mixing the solution for 1 to 30 minutes before the irradiating.
15:
- The method of claim 14, wherein 20 to 40% of the one or more pollutants is degraded before the irradiating based on an initial concentration of the one or more pollutants.
16:
- The method of claim 9, wherein the irradiating occurs with sunlight or a xenon source.
17:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor material is in the shape of agglomerated spheres.
18:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the bismuth and the zinc replace the tin in the tin oxide in the semiconductor material.
19:
- The semiconductor material of claim 1, wherein the semiconductor material has a Bragg R factor of 9.8 to 10.