Ultrathin h-BN/Bi2MoO6 heterojunction with synergetic effect for visible-light photocatalytic tetracycline degradation

• Published in: Journal of colloid and interface science Vol. 589; pp. 545 - 555
• Main Authors: Du, Zhao, Feng, Lang, Guo, Zhonglu, Yan, Tongqi, Hu, Qi, Lin, Jing, Huang, Yang, Tang, Chengchun, Fang, Yi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Inc 01.05.2021
• Subjects: absorption; adsorption; DFT calculations; doxycycline; electric field; irradiation; light; oxytetracycline; photocatalysis; photocatalysts; Synergetic effect; synergism; tetracycline; Tetracycline degradation mechanism; Ultrathin h-BN/Bi2MoO6 heterojunction; Visible-light photocatalyst; Visible-light photocatalyst; Tetracycline degradation mechanism; Synergetic effect; Ultrathin h-BN/Bi2MoO6 heterojunction; DFT calculations
• ISSN: 0021-9797; 1095-7103; 1095-7103
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2021.01.027

[Display omitted] Herein, a series of ultrathin h-BN/Bi2MoO6 heterojunction with excellent photocatalytic activity has been firstly prepared via a feasible solvothermal method. Our results suggest that the optimized photocatalyst possesses a high degradation ratio of tetracycline (TC), oxytetracycline (OTC) and doxycycline (DC) up to 99.19%, 95.28% and 91.04% under visible-light irradiation, respectively. We highlight that the outstanding photocatalytic activity is mainly attributed to the prominent performance of tetracycline adsorption on h-BN and the dominant visible-light absorption by Bi2MoO6 as well as the effective photogenerated carrier separation induced by the synergetic effect between h-BN and Bi2MoO6. Moreover, DFT calculations reveal that the built-in electric field formed between h-BN and Bi2MoO6 gives rise to the separation of carriers and the polarization of tetracycline molecules. Last but not the least, the specific process and micro-mechanism of the photocatalytic tetracycline degradation under visible-light driven have also been illuminated. The present work pioneers the application of ultrathin h-BN/Bi2MoO6 heterojunction as a novel tetracycline degradation photocatalyst and further guides the design of more visible-light photocatalysts.