Facile construction of a Bi6O6(OH)3(NO3)3•1.5H2O/Bi2O2CO3 heterojunction with enhanced photocatalytic degradation activity

A Bi6O6(OH)(3)(NO3)(3)(center dot)1.5H(2)O (BBN)/Bi2O2CO3 (BOC) heterojunction was designed for the first time via a facile hydrothermal method. The photocatalytic performance of catalysts was evaluated by degrading Rhodamine B (RhB) under simulated solar light irradiation. It was found that the degradation rate of RhB by 25 wt%BBN/BOC was dramatically increased about 1.5 and 4.7 times compared with that of pure BOC and BBN, respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic performance migth be attributed to the effective separation of photoinduced electron-hole pairs, benefiting from the construction of heterojunction. Furthermore, the mechanism upon BBN/BOC composites photocatalyst was investigated, expecting this work will bring new insight into the theoretical study and application of semiconductors materials.

Automated summary

A Bi6O6(OH)(3)(NO3)(3)(center dot)1.5H(2)O (BBN)/Bi2O2CO3 (BOC) heterojunction was designed for the first time using a hydrothermal method, demonstrating excellent photocatalytic performance. The degradation rate of Rhodamine B (RhB) was significantly enhanced with 25 wt% BBN/BOC compared to pure BOC and BBN, attributed to the effective separation of photoinduced electron-hole pairs due to the heterojunction construction. Moreover, the mechanism of the BBN/BOC composites photocatalyst was investigated, providing new insights for the theoretical study and application of semiconductor materials.