Construction of direct Z-scheme g-C3N4/BiYWO6 heterojunction photocatalyst with enhanced visible light activity towards the degradation of methylene blue

Construction of the Z-scheme heterojunction photocatalyst achieved highly improved photocatalytic ability by its high redox ability of the photoinduced e(-)-h(+) pairs. In the study, Z-scheme g-C3N4/BiYWO6 heterojunction photocatalyst is prepared by the single-step hydrothermal method. Further, its photocatalytic ability was assessed by degrading methylene blue under visible light exposure. Particularly, the optimized 30 wt% of g-C3N4 in the g-C3N4/BiYWO6 composite exposes almost complete degradation after 90 min, that is similar to 3.0 times greater than the bare BiYWO6 and g-C3N4 with the rate constant value 0.032 min(-1). Experimentally, the radical trapping studies indicate O-2 center dot(-) and center dot OH radicals are playing a vital role in the photocatalytic degradation process. Also, the Z-scheme g-C3N4/BiYWO6 heterojunction photocatalyst exhibits excellent photoelectrochemical property and it is stable after 5 cycles, which indicates its good reusability nature. These enhancements are due to the newly formed heterostructure that facilitates the migration and separation efficiency of the photoproduced e(-)-h(+) pairs. Hence, the synthesized Z-scheme g-C3N4/BiYWO6 heterostructure could be an excellent material for wastewater remediation works.

Automated summary

The construction of the Z-scheme heterojunction photocatalyst has greatly improved photocatalytic ability by utilizing the high redox ability of the photoinduced e(-)-h(+) pairs. In this study, a Z-scheme g-C3N4/BiYWO6 heterojunction photocatalyst was prepared using a single-step hydrothermal method. The photocatalytic ability was evaluated by degrading methylene blue under visible light exposure. The optimized 30 wt% of g-C3N4 in the g-C3N4/BiYWO6 composite showed almost complete degradation after 90 minutes, which was approximately 3.0 times greater than the bare BiYWO6 and g-C3N4 with a rate constant value of 0.032 min(-1). The newly formed heterostructure in the Z-scheme g-C3N4/BiYWO6 photocatalyst facilitated the migration and separation efficiency of the photoproduced e(-)-h(+) pairs, leading to enhanced photocatalytic performance. The photocatalyst also exhibited excellent photoelectrochemical property and good reusability nature after 5 cycles.