Flexible Porous SiO₂–Bi₂WO₆ Nanofibers Film for Visible‐Light Photocatalytic Water Purification

Abstract

Advancement of the synthetic performance of photocatalysts in environmental applications has been the most clinging pursue in relevant research fields. In this article, we propose a novel design strategy of an efficient visible-light photocatalyst with versatile advantages for environmental remediation. Flexible SiO 2 nanofibers were prepared with sol-gel and electrospinning techniques, followed by uniform anchoring of Bi 2 WO 6 nanoplatelets on the fibers' surface, forming unique hierarchical SiO 2 -BiWO 6 composite fibers. Benefitting from the combination of the advantages from both the SiO 2 nanofibers and the Bi 2 WO 6 nanoplatelets, the film composed of SiO 2 -Bi 2 WO 6 fibers simultaneously possess high visible-light photocatalytic reactivity, good flexibility, and excellent thermal stability, affording many potential applications especially in environmental remediation. Water purification performance of the SiO 2 -Bi 2 WO 6 fibers film was evaluated here as an application example, and the results demonstrated are intriguing.

Carbon Dots-Decorated Bi2WO6 in an Inverse Opal Film as a Photoanode for Photoelectrochemical Solar Energy Conversion under Visible-Light Irradiation

“…On the other hand, metal oxide semiconductors typically have high chemical stability, while the bandgap energies of metal oxides are commonly higher than those of sulfides because the O (2p) orbital exhibits a lower energy than the S (2p) orbital. Among the metal oxides, Bi 2 WO 6 has received extensive attention due to its moderate bandgap (2.7–2.8 eV) (Figure S3), chemical stability and non-toxicity [28,29,30,31]. However, Bi 2 WO 6 suffers from an unsatisfactory photo-response range and rapid recombination of the photogenerated carriers.…”

Facile Synthesis of BiOBr/Bi2Sn2O7 Heterojunction Photocatalysts with Improved Photocatalytic Activities

“…Recently, bismuth‐based semiconductors, including BiOX (X = Cl, Br, and I), BiVO 4, Bi 2 WO 6 , and Bi 2 Sn 2 O 7, have attracted much attention due to their outstanding photo‐oxidation activity. Bi‐based semiconductors are believed to possess the hybridized energy band structures, which can effectively suppress the recombination of photogenerated electrons and holes .…”

Heterojunction photoanodes for solar water splitting using chemical-bath-deposited In2O3 micro-cubes and electro-sprayed Bi2WO6 textured nanopillars

“…3,4 Bi is a p-block metal with d 10 electronic conguration; hence, the Bi 6s orbital can hybridize with O 2p levels to form a hybrid valance band that enhances the mobility of photogenerated carriers and increases the photocatalytic activity of the material. 5 Among various Bi oxides, Bi 2 WO 6 has recently attracted attention for the relatively narrow bandgap (2.6-2.8 eV) and unique layered Aurivillius oxide structure, 6 which efficiently uses visible light for photocatalysis. However, the actual utilization of this material is limited because of the propensity for recombination of charge carriers in devices made with it.…”