Preparation of Binary Type II α-Bi₂O₃/Bi₁₂TiO₂₀ Cross-Shaped Heterojunction with Enhanced Visible Light Photocatalytic Performance

Abstract

The binary type II α-Bi 2 O 3 /Bi 12 TiO 20 heterojunction composite was successfully obtained by a simple hydrothermal process. The pH value and the Bi/Ti molar ratio were the key to form the α-Bi 2 O 3 /Bi 12 TiO 20 heterojunction. The α-Bi 2 O 3 nanobelts intertwined with the Bi 12 TiO 20 nanobelts to form a cross-shaped structure in the composite. The obvious red-shift can be detected in Raman spectra. UV−vis DRS also revealed that the effectively reduced band gap of the heterojunction composite led to sunlight absorption in a larger range. Meanwhile, the photocurrent responses and the EIS demonstrated that the combination of Bi 12 TiO 20 and α-Bi 2 O 3 significantly promoted the separation of photogenerated electron−hole pairs and suppressed their recombination, which was also confirmed by PL analysis. Furthermore, photocatalytic degradation experiments proved that the α-Bi 2 O 3 / Bi 12 TiO 20 heterojunction composite had excellent catalytic performance under visible light, whose rate constant value (k) was about 2.0 times that of pure α-Bi 2 O 3 and 4.5 times that of pure Bi 12 TiO 20 samples. A possible photocatalytic mechanism of α-Bi 2 O 3 /Bi 12 TiO 20 was also proposed based on p−p and type II heterojunction. It was concluded that the heterojunction structure markedly promoted the migration and separation of carriers to enhance its photoactivity.

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“…6 Therefore, photocatalysis, having the great advantage of direct utilization of sunlight and water resources, is expected to robustly contribute to solving the problems of environmental pollution and energy shortage. 7,8 The development of highly active photocatalytic materials is the key to promote the advancement of this technology.…”

“…In addition, photocatalysis shows great promise for the crucial challenge of clean energy production: in response to the over-development and serious pollution from fossil fuel combustion, hydrogen is regarded as the ideal clean energy vector for the 21st century . Therefore, photocatalysis, having the great advantage of direct utilization of sunlight and water resources, is expected to robustly contribute to solving the problems of environmental pollution and energy shortage. , The development of highly active photocatalytic materials is the key to promote the advancement of this technology.…”