Controllable Crystal Growth and Improved Photocatalytic Activity of Porous Bi₂O₃–Bi₂S₃ Composite Sheets

Abstract

Porous Bi2O3–Bi2S3 composite sheets were constructed through a combinational methodology of chemical bath deposition and hydrothermal reaction. The Na2S precursor concentration in the hydrothermal solution was varied to understand the correlation between the vulcanization degree and structure evolution of the porous Bi2O3–Bi2S3 composite sheets. The control of the etching rate of the Bi2O3 sheet template and the regrowth rate of Bi2S3 crystallites via suitable sulfide precursor concentration during the hydrothermal reaction utilizes the formation of porous Bi2O3–Bi2S3 sheets. Due to the presence of Bi2S3 crystallites and porous structure in the Bi2O3–Bi2S3 composites, the improved visible-light absorption ability and separation efficiency of photogenerated charge carriers are achieved. Furthermore, the as-synthesized Bi2O3–Bi2S3 composite sheets obtained from vulcanization with a 0.01M Na2S precursor display highly enhanced photocatalytic degradation toward methyl orange (MO) dyes compared with the pristine Bi2O3 and Bi2S3. The porous Bi2O3–Bi2S3 sheet system shows high surface active sites, fast transfer, high-efficiency separation of photoinduced charge carriers, and enhanced redox capacity concerning their constituent counterparts. This study affords a promising approach to constructing Bi2O3-based Z-scheme composites with a suitable microstructure and Bi2O3/Bi2S3 phase ratio for photoactive device applications.