Fabrication of WO3/Bi2MoO6 heterostructures with efficient and highly selective photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride

Antibiotic pollution is one of the major issues confronting human. The photocatalytic technology has been focused due to its energy conservation and environmental protection. However, semiconductor photocatalysts have some problems, such as low light utilization, carrier recombination and so on. Constructing a heterojunction can effectively solve these problems. Herein, a new heterostructure of WO3/Bi2MoO6 with core-shell structure were successfully synthesized. The properties of the heterojunction were fully characterized. Subsequently, the visible light catalytic effect of the complex was studied by degrading antibiotics. Compared with other antibiotics, this heterojunction has the best photocatalytic degradation effect on tetracycline hydrochloride. The photodegradation efficiency for tetracycline hydrochloride of complex is 157 times and 5 times than that of pure WO3 and Bi2MoO6 respectively. This is due to the combination of materials that promotes the separation of photogenerated electrons and holes, and extends their lifetime. Finally, a possible photocatalytic mechanism is proposed. (C) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

A new heterostructure of WO3/Bi2MoO6 with core-shell structure was successfully synthesized and fully characterized for its properties. The visible light catalytic effect of the complex on degrading antibiotics was studied, showing the best photocatalytic degradation effect on tetracycline hydrochloride. The efficient separation of photogenerated electrons and holes contributed to this superior performance.