Ag doped Bi2O2.33 microrods: photocatalytic activity investigation

Abstract

Ag doped Bi₂O_2.33 was successfully synthesized via a facile and chemical strategy, and the photocatalytic activity of the products was investigated. The crystal structure and morphology of the products were characterized by XRD, FT-IR, FESEM and HRTEM. The products show good crystallinity of the body-centered tetragonal phase of Bi₂O_2.33. Results of UV-vis DRS show that Ag doped Bi₂O_2.33 exhibits stronger and broader spectral absorption than bare Bi₂O_2.33. The Ag-6% Bi₂O_2.33 was found to exhibit the highest photocatalytic activity in the rhodamine B degradation experiments, and achieved a degradation efficiency of 93.54%; while bare Bi₂O_2.33, Ag-3%, and Ag-9% achieved degradation efficiencies of 61.93%, 73.62%, and 82.32%, respectively. The stability and reusability of Ag doped Bi₂O_2.33 was also tested. The results showed that Ag-6% Bi₂O_2.33 could obtain good degradation efficiency during five cycles of reusing, 93.54%, 92.50%, 92.25%, 92.20% and 92.20%, respectively. The active species of O₂˙⁻ and ˙OH during the photodegradation process were detected by EPR technology. Ag-doped Bi₂O_2.33 is a promising photocatalyst with high photocatalytic activity and stability, showing a great potential in the field of environmental remediation.