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3D/2D Ln3+-doped BiOBr/rGO heterostructure with enhanced photocatalytic performance

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Abstract

Three-dimensional/two-dimensional (3D/2D) rare earth Ln3+ (Ln = Er or Eu)-doped BiOBr wrapped with reduced graphene oxide (Bi-Ln/rGO) was obtained via a two-step solvothermal–hydrothermal process. The doping of Ln3+ and the construction of heterojunction between 3D Ln3+-doped BiOBr microspheres and 2D rGO nanosheets were beneficial to the wide absorption of visible light and the efficient separation of photoinduced electrons and holes, further improving the photocatalytic activity of Bi-Ln/rGO composites for RhB photodegradation. The photocatalytic activity of Bi-Ln/rGO was higher than those of pure BiOBr, Ln3+-doped BiOBr, and BiOBr/rGO. The radical-trapping experiments on active species indicated that h+ and ·O2− were mainly responsible for the photodegradation of RhB. The mechanism of the enhanced photocatalytic performance was proposed on the basis of radical-trapping experiments on active species.

The doping of Ln3+ and the construction of a heterojunction between 3D BiOBr microspheres and 2D rGO nanosheets were beneficial to the wide adsorption of visible light and the efficient separation of photoinduced electrons and holes, further improving the photocatalytic activity of Bi-Ln/rGO composites for RhB photodegradation.

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Funding

This work was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (CN) (Grant Nos. ZR2017PB003 and ZR2017PEM007), Educational Commission of Jiangxi Province of China (Grant No. GJJ170546), and the PhD early development program of Liaocheng University (Grant No. 318051505).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Liaocheng University, Liaocheng, 252000, China

    Xiaozhen Ren, Yanhui Sun, Hu Xing, Ke Wu, Jie Yin, Shujuan Yao & Xingchuan Zhao

  2. School of Metallurgy and Chemistry Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou, 341000, China

    Wei Wang

  3. School of Chemistry, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, China

    Hua Yang

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  1. Xiaozhen Ren
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  2. Yanhui Sun
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  3. Hu Xing
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  4. Ke Wu
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  5. Wei Wang
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  6. Jie Yin
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  7. Shujuan Yao
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  8. Xingchuan Zhao
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  9. Hua Yang
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Correspondence to Xiaozhen Ren or Hua Yang.

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Ren, X., Sun, Y., Xing, H. et al. 3D/2D Ln3+-doped BiOBr/rGO heterostructure with enhanced photocatalytic performance. J Nanopart Res 21, 111 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-019-4552-z

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