Bi(2)Wo(6)/ZnFe(2)o(4) heterostructures nanofibers: Enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity and magnetically separable property

Bi(2)Wo(6) nanosheets were uniformly grown on electrospun ZnFe(2)o(4) nanofibers via a solvothermal technique. The loading amounts of Bi(2)Wo(6) in the Bi(2)Wo(6)/ZnFe(2)o(4) heterostructures nanofibers could be controlled by adjusting the precursor concentration in solvothermal process. Under visible-light irradiation, the degradation rate constant (rhodamine B) of the Bi(2)Wo(6)/ZnFe(2)o(4) heterostructures was 11.6 times than that of pure ZnFe(2)o(4) nanofibers and 5.8 times than that of pure Bi(2)Wo(6) nanosheets, mainly owing to the effective separation of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs in the Bi(2)Wo(6)/ZnFe(2)o(4) heterostructures. Notably, the Bi(2)Wo(6)/ZnFe(2)o(4) heterostructures nanofibers could be easily separated from the solution under an external magnetic field by employing the ferromagnetic behaviors of ZnFe(2)o(4). After several cycles, the photocatalytic activity of the Bi(2)Wo(6)/ZnFe(2)o(4) heterostructures nanofibers did not decrease significantly suggesting that the Bi(2)Wo(6)/ZnFe(2)o(4) heterostructures possess stable characteristics. This kind of Bi(2)Wo(6)/ZnFe(2)o(4) heterostructures nanofibers with high visible-light photocatalytic activity, excellent stability and excellent recyclability could be significance in environmental application.