An Iron Oxychloride/Reduced Graphene Oxide Heterojunction with Enhanced Catalytic Performance as a Photo-Fenton Catalyst

To aid with the environmental crisis, a new iron oxychloride/reduced graphene oxide (FeOCl/rGO) heterojunction has been successfully synthesized. The heterojunction shows enhanced photo-Fenton catalytic activity and stability relative to those of FeOCl under mild conditions (neutral solution and natural light). The surface area, optical adsorption, and electronegativity of FeOCl/rGO are larger than those of FeOCl, and these properties contribute to the enhanced catalytic performance of FeOCl/rGO. Furthermore, the rapid transfer of photogenerated electrons from rGO to FeOCl promotes the reduction of Fe-III to Fe-II, which boosts the production of ()OH radicals. On the basis of active-species trapping experiments, the ()OH radicals play a primary role, whereas ()O-2(-) radicals play a secondary role. This work demonstrates the first example of the facilitation of Fenton catalytic performance through the introduction of rGO to FeOCl for sunlight-induced photodegradation.