Cobalt-promoted bismuth vanadate photocatalysts of variable cobalt content (0–1.0 wt.%) were synthesized and characterized with various techniques including BET, XRD, DRS, XPS and TEM. BiVO₄ exists in the monoclinic scheelite structure, while cobalt addition improves the absorbance in the visible region although it does not affect the band gap energy of BiVO₄. Cobalt exists in the form of well-dispersed Co₃O₄ nanocrystallites, which are in intimate contact with the much larger BiVO₄ nanoparticles. Photocatalytic activity was evaluated for the degradation of propyl paraben (PP) under simulated solar radiation. The activity of pristine BiVO₄ is significantly improved adding small amounts of cobalt and is maximized for the catalyst containing 0.5 wt.% Co. PP degradation in ultrapure pure water increases with increasing photocatalyst loading (100 mg/L to 1.5 g/L), and decreasing PP concentration (1600–200 μg/L). Experiments in bottled water, as well as in pure water spiked with bicarbonate and chloride ions showed little effect of non-target inorganics on degradation. Conversely, degradation is severely impeded in secondary treated wastewater. The enhancement of the photocatalytic activity of the synthesized catalysts is attributed to efficient electron-hole separation, achieved at the p-n junction formed between the p-type Co₃O₄ and the n-type BiVO₄ semiconductors.

合成并使用多种技术（包括BET，XRD，DRS，XPS和TEM）合成了钴含量可变（0-1.0 wt。％）的钴促进的钒酸铋光催化剂。BiVO ₄存在于单斜白钨矿结构中，而添加钴虽然不影响BiVO ₄的带隙能，但改善了可见光区域的吸光度。钴以分散良好的Co ₃ O ₄纳米微晶的形式存在，它与更大的BiVO ₄纳米颗粒紧密接触。评价了在模拟太阳辐射下光催化活性对羟基苯甲酸丙酯（PP）的降解。原始BiVO ₄的活性添加少量钴可显着改善该性能，并且对于含0.5 wt。％Co的催化剂而言，其最大化。随着光催化剂负载量的增加（100 mg / L至1.5 g / L）和PP浓度降低（1600），超纯净水中的PP降解增加–200μg/ L）。在瓶装水以及掺有碳酸氢根和氯离子的纯水中进行的实验表明，非目标无机物对降解的影响很小。相反，二次处理废水严重阻碍了降解。合成催化剂的光催化活性的提高归因于有效的电子-空穴分离，该电子-空穴分离在p型Co ₃ O ₄与n型BiVO ₄半导体之间形成的pn结处实现。