The preparation and property research on doping rare earth into Nanosized La/ZnO photocatalyst

With ZnSO₄ · 7H₂O, La (NO₃)₃ · 6H₂O, citric and ethylene glycol as raw materials, Nanosized La/ZnO was prepared by sol-gel method. The structural properties of the catalyst were characterized by means of XRD and SEM techniques. The catalytic activity was evaluated by photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange as a model reaction. The influences of doped quantities, the temperature, stirring rate, illumination time, initial concentration, flocculation dosage are all studied systematically. The results show that La³⁺ -doping can significantly improve the photocatalysis of ZnO. The best proper amount of La-doping is 0.25%, and the degradation rate of La/ZnO is increased by 23.2%, higher than that before.