Efficient Photocatalytic Degradation of Dyes over Hierarchical BiOBr/β-Co(OH)2/PVP Multicomponent Photocatalyst under Visible-Light Irradiation

Wei Li, Peitao Li, Yin Liu, Baoliang Zhang, Hepeng Zhang, Wangchang Geng, Qiuyu Zhang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

15 Scopus citations

Abstract

A novel visible-light driven BiOBr/β-Co(OH)2/PVP (PVP=polyvinylpyrrolidone) hierarchical multicomponent photocatalyst assembled in nanosheets was synthesized by a simple one-pot solvothermal synthesis. The as-prepared photocatalyst was characterized by field-emitting scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, N2 adsorption-desorption analysis, FTIR spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray powder diffraction analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV/Vis diffuse reflectance spectra, and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. This research shows that the formation of the p-n heterojunction would be very conducive to effectively inhibit the recombination of the photoexcited electron-hole pairs and enhance the photoactivity significantly. Owing to its narrow band-gap energy (≈2.49 eV) and fast interfacial charge migration, this novel photocatalyst can efficiently absorb visible light and shows an improved ability for utilizing light energy. Although both β-Co(OH)2 and BiOBr alone exhibit little photoactivity for the degradation of dyes, the BiOBr/β-Co(OH)2/PVP hierarchical multicomponent photocatalyst exhibits unexpected, surprisingly high photoactivity and stability in degrading dyes in aqueous solution at moderate Co/Bi molar ratio and moderate PVP addition. The catalyst′s photoactivity is approximately 9.7 times of that of β-Co(OH)2 and 3.2 times of that of BiOBr. This unusual photoactivity mainly arises from the synergetic chemical coupling effects between BiOBr, β-Co(OH)2, and PVP. The excellent photoactivity and photostability of this hierarchical multicomponent photocatalyst make it a promising photocatalyst under visible-light response. Beyond that, this novel photocatalyst can be reused many times without significant loss of its activity. Catching light: The synthesis of the hierarchical BiOBr/β-Co(OH)2/PVP multicomponent photocatalyst by a simple solvothermal method is described. This novel catalyst exhibits enhanced visible-light photoactivity for the degradation of representative dyes such as rhodamine B (RhB).

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4163-4172
Number of pages10
JournalChemCatChem
Volume7
Issue number24
DOIs
StatePublished - 14 Dec 2015

Keywords

  • bismuth
  • cobalt
  • dyes/pigments
  • photochemistry
  • semiconductors

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