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Introducing piezoelectric materials with the built-in electric field caused by mechanical force has been confirmed as an effective strategy to boost the separation efficiency of photoexcited charge carriers that determines the photocatalytic performance. In this study, we introduced Bi4Ti3O12 with superior piezoelectric properties into BiVO4–Bi4V2O10 materials to synthesize a 2D Bi4Ti3O12–BiVO4–Bi4V2O10 photocatalyst via a facile hydrothermal method. Compared with bare BiVO4, the Bi4Ti3O12–BiVO4–Bi4V2O10 piezo-photocatalytic activity towards Cr(VI) removal and oxygen evolution is boosted remarkably under both illumination and ultrasound treatments. The promoted photocatalytic activity can be ascribed to the accelerated photoexcited carrier separation efficiency driven by the polarization electric field and the synergy effect in the heterostructure. This work provides a simple and sustainable strategy for the design and development of piezo-photocatalysts with high photoredox activity capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a visible-light photocatalyst, bismuth iodide oxide (BiOI) is widely applied in water photocatalytic pollution degradation. However, due to the inherent high recombination rate of electron−hole pairs, an efficient photocatalytic performance could realize rarely by bare BiOI, resulting in its limited practical application. In this study, a novel type-II BiOI−C 3 N 5 heterostructure was prepared by a feasible solvothermal method to inhibit the recombination of photoexcited electrons and holes. The photocatalytic activity of the heterostructure was evaluated by degradation of tetracycline (TC) and penicillin G sodium. The results showed that compared with bare C 3 N 5 and BiOI, the photodegradation efficiency of tetracycline and penicillin G sodium was remarkable improved after heterostructure formation and the BiOI−C 3 N 5 (10% wt) samples demonstrated a higher degradation efficiency. The improvement of photocatalytic degradation activities can be attributed to the formation of type-II heterostructures with a close contact. Under the synergistic effect and interface structure in BiOI−C 3 N 5 , the spatial separation and transfer of charge carriers were increased significantly, which is in favor of enhancing the photocatalytic oxidation capacity of BiOI. [Display omitted] • A new BiOI-C 3 N 5 heterostructure was successfully constructed to heighten the photocatalytic oxidation capacity of BiOI. • Synergistic effect and interfacial fusions in BiOI −C 3 N 5 were formed for accelerating the charge carriers transfer. • The BiOI−C 3 N 5 heterostructures exhibit remarkable tetracycline (TC) and sodium penicillin G degradation performances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]