Highly efficient tri-phase TiO2–Y2O3–V2O5 nanocomposite: structural, optical, photocatalyst, and antibacterial studies

In the present work, pristine anatase titanium oxide (TiO2), vanadium oxide (V2O5), and yttrium oxide (Y2O3) nanopowders (NPs), and tri-phase TiO2–Y2O3–V2O5 nanocomposite (NC) were prepared via a simple co-precipitation method. The grown products were characterized by employing a range of techniques, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV–vis), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis. The XRD diffraction pattern confirmed the formation of NC having TiO2 tetragonal, Y2O3 cubic, and V2O5 orthorhombic phases. FTIR spectra evident the presence of metal–oxygen bond in NPs and NC. The energy bandgap (2.55 eV) of NC is found in the range of visible region specified its use as an efficient photocatalyst under sunlight illumination. EDX analysis confirmed the existence of Ti, Y, and V in the nanocomposite. The antibacterial studies against Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumonia, and Proteus vulgaris bacteria by varying concentrations (10, 20, 30, and 40 mg ml−1) showed that the NC has higher antibacterial activity than individual oxides. The photocatalytic activity exhibited that NC has the highest degradation efficiency 99.29%, 90.69%, and 99.83% against methylene blue (MB), safranin-O (SO), and methyl orange (MO) dyes as compared to pristine TiO2, V2O5, and Y2O3 NPs under 80 min direct sunlight irradiation. Furthermore, the grown NC is a good candidate for treating organic pollutants and bacteria inactivation.