A novel CeO2/MIL101(Fe) heterojunction for enhanced photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline under visible-light irradiation

BACKGROUND: MIL101(Fe) has attracted growing attention as a potential new photocatalyst. However, the drawbacks of easy recombination of photogenerated electron-hole pairs result in unsatisfactory activity. RESULTS: In this work, to enhance the photocatalytic activity of MIL101(Fe), CeO2 nanorods were attached on the surface of octahedral MIL101(Fe) to obtain a novel 1D/3D heterojunction CeO2/MIL101(Fe). The as-synthesized samples were characterized by a series of methods. The photocatalytic activity of CeO2/MIL101(Fe) was investigated by photodegradation of tetracycline under visible-light irradiation. Compared with pristine CeO2 and MIL101(Fe), the as-prepared CeO2/MIL101(Fe) composite with CeO2 content of 10 wt% exhibited a superior photocatalytic activity, with a tetracycline (TC) degradation efficiency of 83.5% and a TOC removal rate of 55.7% within 120 min. CONCLUSION: The enhanced photocatalytic performance is attributed to the efficient separation of photogenerated charge carriers resulting from the formation of type-II heterojunction between CeO2 and MIL101(Fe). This work provides a new approach for the fabrication of MOF-based photocatalysts with high activity. (C) 2022 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).

Automated summary

In this study, a novel 1D/3D heterojunction CeO2/MIL101(Fe) was synthesized by attaching CeO2 nanorods on the surface of octahedral MIL101(Fe). The as-prepared CeO2/MIL101(Fe) composite exhibited superior photocatalytic activity under visible-light irradiation, attributed to the efficient separation of photogenerated charge carriers resulting from the formation of a type-II heterojunction between CeO2 and MIL101(Fe).