Light-driven durable activation of peroxymonosulfate over Fe-doped bismuth oxysulfide constructed by high-energy ball-milling strategy

Here we report a feasible high-energy ball-milling strategy to prepare Fe-doped bismuth oxysulfide (Bi2O2S) that exhibits durable activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) in a wide range of pH to degrade tetracycline (TC) under light irradiation. Its successful performance was achieved by the synergistic effect of Fe doping and Fe-O bond, resulting in increased active sites for accelerating the charge separation and PMS activation and promoting the redox regeneration of Fe3+ to Fe2+. The activity of Fe-doped BiOS was systematically optimized, and tetracycline as a model pollutant can be removed within 30 min using 3.3%Fe/BiOS. The nonradical (1O2) and accessible radical (O2.-, SO4.�, .OH) pathways were proposed to be responsible for PMS-activated TC degradation under light irradiation. This present work paves a replicable avenue to scalable production of high-efficiency photocatalysts using a high-energy ball-milling procedure and extends the promising application of the PMS activation system in practical environmental remediation.

Automated summary

A feasible high-energy ball-milling strategy was used to prepare Fe-doped bismuth oxysulfide (Bi2O2S) that showed durable activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) to degrade tetracycline (TC) under light irradiation at a wide range of pH. The synergy between Fe doping and Fe-O bond increased active sites for charge separation and PMS activation, facilitating the redox regeneration of Fe3+ to Fe2+. The optimized Fe-doped BiOS catalyst with 3.3%Fe/BiOS achieved efficient removal of tetracycline within 30 minutes. Nonradical (1O2) and accessible radical (O2.-, SO4.�, .OH) pathways were proposed as responsible for PMS-activated TC degradation under light irradiation. This work provides a reproducible method for scalable production of high-efficiency photocatalysts through high-energy ball-milling, and extends the application of the PMS activation system in practical environmental remediation.