Reactable Polyelectrolyte-Assisted Synthesis of BiOCl with Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity

The reactable polyelectrolyte, poly(allylamine hydrochloride), was used for the first time to fabricate BiOCl materials via an assisted solvothermal method. The influence of polyelectrolyte concentrations on the formation of BiOCl was systematically investigated. The samples were characterized by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N-2 gas sorption, infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), as well as ultraviolet visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). The results showed that the polyelectrolyte, which acted as reactant, template, or structure-directing agent, had a great effect on the structure of as-fabricated BiOCl materials during the reactive process. The possible formation mechanism of the BiOCl materials has been studied. Moreover, the photocatalytic activity of the as-fabricated BiOCl was evaluated by the degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light irradiation. Furthermore, the relationship between the structure of the BiOCl materials and the photocatalyic activity was studied in detail. The holes rather than (OH)-O-center dot were the predominant active species in the photocatalytic process. Also, it can be supposed that the improved light harvesting, high surface area, O-vacancies, enhanced adsorption capability of dye, faster interfacial charge separation, and the special structure of BiOCl had contributed to the good photocatalytic activity and high photostability of BiOCl microspheres. This route preparing the BiOCl materials with special structure can be expected to be applicable to the preparation of other materials with novel morphologies and advanced properties in all kinds of fields, including photocatalysis and electrochemistry.