One-pot citric acid/nitrates combustion design of 2D nanosheet mesoporous Bi alpha Cl beta O delta nanostructure: Efficient sunlight photocatalytic elimination of tetracycline-HCl

The development of high-efficiency and stable nano-photocatalysts for environmental pollution control is a rapidly evolving research domain. The fabrication of Z-scheme heterojunctions with exceptional redox abilities has emerged as a promising and effective approach. In this study, the Z-scheme heterojunction sheet-like photocatalyst was created using a one-pot citric acid/nitrates combustion method, consisting of Bi alpha Cl beta O delta. To optimize the photocatalyst's physicochemical properties, the synthesis process was conducted at different fuel to oxidizer ratios (Phi = 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1), which is a critical factor in the combustion reaction. Compared to the pristine BiOCl with a photocatalytic efficiency of 65%, heterojunction nanosheets with a Phi ratio of 0.5 exhibited superior performance in completely removing aqueous tetracycline-HCl under simulated solar light irradiation. This boosting performance is mainly due to the improved light harvesting (E-g = 2.52 eV), charge separation and transfer resulting from the Z-scheme structure, as well as the increased pore volume (0.565 cm(3)/g) and specific surface area (127.9 m(2)/g) and well-grown sheet-like morphology resulting from the high temperature, heat, and released gases during combustion. These characteristics were confirmed using various analytical techniques, including DRS, XRD, BET-BJH, FESEM, EDX, and TEM. Finally, the stability of the photocatalysts was tested, and a potential photocatalytic reaction mechanism based on a Z-scheme heterojunction was proposed.

Automated summary

The study presents the fabrication of Z-scheme heterojunction sheet-like photocatalysts for environmental pollution control. By adjusting the fuel to oxidizer ratio, the physicochemical properties of the photocatalysts were optimized. The heterojunction nanosheets showed superior performance in removing aqueous tetracycline-HCl under solar light irradiation, attributed to the improved light harvesting, charge separation and transfer, as well as the increased pore volume and specific surface area.