Tailored BiVO4 for enhanced visible-light photocatalytic performance

The application of solar-light activated semiconductors in advanced water treatment, among which BiVO4 is considered a prospective candidate which suffers from rapid recombination of photogenerated charges, poor electron transfer kinetics, and low oxidative power of photogenerated holes. To address some of these limitations of BiVO4, we have tailored an isotype homojunction BiVO4. Herein, a novel, simple, and energy efficient protocol based on co-precipitation synthesis of BiVO4 using ethylenediaminotetracetic acid (EDTA) in water is presented. The obtained isotype BiVO4 has superior opto-electronic and photocatalytic properties in comparison to hydrothermally synthesized BiVO4. The formation of an isotype homojunction resulted in an increase in photocurrent density and improved charge separation. The isotype BiVO4 has achieved 2.5 times higher DCF removal than its hydrothermal counterpart. The degradation mechanism was investigated using scavengers for reactive oxygen species/sites; superoxide radical, photogenerated holes and hydroxyl radicals, indicating the latter as the primary reactive species responsible for DCF degradation.

Automated summary

By tailoring an isotype homojunction BiVO4 structure, the opto-electronic and photocatalytic properties were improved, resulting in a higher DCF removal rate. The formation of the isotype homojunction led to enhanced charge separation, leading to an increased efficiency in degrading DCF.