Synthesis and visible light photocatalytic behavior of WO3 (core)/Bi2WO6 (shell)

WO3 (core)/Bi2WO6 (shell) photocatalysts were fabricated via a hydrothermal reaction followed by heat treatment, and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscope (SEM-EDX), UV-vis diffuse reflection spectra (DRS), and photoluminescence spectra (PL). The photocatalytic activities of WO3/Bi2WO6 samples with capped geometries were tested by the oxidation of the rhodamine B using a 4W white-luminescence light emitting diode (LED) lamp as the visible light source, and all WO3/Bi2WO6 samples show the remarkably greater photocatalytic activity than the pure WO3 sample. The possible mechanism for the enhanced photocatalytic performance of the WO3/Bi2WO6 samples is discussed. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.