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A novel BiOI/Bi 12 O 17 Cl 2 heterojunction composite was fabricated via a facile deposition–precipitation method. The surface loading of a portion of BiOI strongly broadened the visible light absorption of Bi 12 O 17 Cl 2 from 500–600 nm. The photoelectric performance measurements show that the tightly contacted BiOI/Bi 12 O 17 Cl 2 heterojunction largely strengthened the spatial separation efficiency of photocharges under visible light. Furthermore, BiOI/Bi 12 O 17 Cl 2 applying to degrade two contaminant models, methyl orange (MO) and phenol, displayed much higher photocatalytic activity than the single Bi 12 O 17 Cl 2 and BiOI under visible light ( λ >400 nm). This is a successful Bi-based semiconductor composite photocatalytic system that can efficiently remove the organic contaminants in wastewater.

Ag/BiOI and Ag/AgI/BiOI composites were successfully in-situ synthesized via the same facile photoreduction strategy through adjusting the Ag + amount. The scanning electron microscopy shows that Ag and Ag/AgI nanoparticles were loaded on the surface of BiOI microplates. The formation of Ag originated from the surface adsorbed Ag + for Ag/BiOI while from the first-step cation-exchange generated AgI for Ag/AgI/BiOI. Under visible light ( λ >420 nm), both Ag/BiOI and Ag/AgI/BiOI displayed higher photocatalytic activities than pure BiOI for degradation of rhodamine B. It provides a universal way to obtain Ag/BiOX and Ag/AgX/BiOX photocatalysts using photoreduction strategy for their potential application in water purification.