Search

Exploring highly efficient catalyst is the key for integration of photocatalysis and peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation. Herein, WC/Bi2WO6 nanocomposites were judiciously constructed by anchoring the non-noble metal plasmonic WC nanocrystals onto the surface of ultrathin Bi2WO6 nanosheets to activate PMS for efficient photodegradation of bisphenol A (BPA). The prepared WC/Bi2WO6 nanocomposites possess abundant heterojunction interface, resulting in excellent photoabsorption capability, interfacial charge transfer dynamics, and charge carrier concentration. As expected, WC/Bi2WO6 nanocomposites exhibit superior catalytic activity and stability in PMS activation toward BPA degradation with removal efficiency of 97.4%, which is higher than that of Bi2WO6. The content of WC nanocrystals are critical to tune the catalytic activity of the nanocomposites. The intermediates and degradation pathways were determined through LC-MS/MS analysis. Finally, the reaction mechanism was systematically elucidated based on the active species detection, charge transfer dynamics, and band structures. The desirable photocatalytic performances can be ascribed to the constructional heterojunction between the WC nanocrystals and Bi2WO6 nanosheets, which can efficiently enhance the photoabsorption capability, heighten the interfacial charge transfer ability, and ameliorate the charge carrier concentration. This study provides some insights to construct highly efficient photocatalyst modification with non-noble metal based plasmonic materials for environmental remediation.

The combination of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation and photocatalysis has proven to be effective for organic contaminants treatment. However, the construction of an efficient catalytic material is an important challenge. Herein, novel Bi2WO6/BiOCl heterojunction nanocomposites were successfully designed and fabricated using a facile and effective strategy for bisphenol A (BPA) photodegradation with PMS activation. The well-designed heterojunction with improvement of the contact area and interface microstructure was obtained through in situ growth of the Bi2WO6 on the surface of BiOCl. The Bi2WO6/BiOCl nanocomposites exhibit excellent catalytic performance in PMS activation for BPA degradation under visible light irradiation. A possible photocatalytic reaction mechanism was systematically revealed. The excellent catalytic performance is mainly attributed to the strong interaction between Bi2WO6 and BiOCl, resulting in an enhanced photoabsorption and a more efficient interfacial charge separation and transfer. This paper provides a novel strategy to design efficient catalytic materials for organic contaminants remediation with PMS activation.

The rational fabrication of direct Z-scheme heterostructures photocatalysts is a pivotal strategy to boost the interfacial charge migration and separation. Herein, direct Z-scheme Bi2WO6/WO3 composites were rationally fabricated for the degradation of bisphenol A combined with the activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS). The tight interface contact between Bi2WO6 and WO3 was successfully formed by the in situ epitaxial growth of ultrathin Bi2WO6 nanosheets at the surface of WO3 nanorods. The Bi2WO6/WO3 composite presented highly efficient catalytic performance toward degradation of BPA with PMS activation as compared to the WO3 and Bi2WO6. PMS can dramatically boost the photocatalytic activity of the composites. Moreover, the results of active radical scavenging experiments revealed that h+, &bull, O2&minus, and &bull, SO4&minus, are critical active species in the photodegradation reaction. Finally, the photocatalytic mechanism for the degradation of BPA is also discussed in detail. The great improvement of photocatalytic performance should be ascribed to the effective formation of the direct Z-scheme heterojunctions between Bi2WO6 and WO3, resulting in improved light absorption, an efficient transfer and separation of photoinduced charge carriers, and a considerable amount of the electrons and holes with strong reduction and oxidation abilities. The study might provide new inspirations to design and construct heterostructured nanomaterials with outstanding photoactivity for environmental remediation.