Ce-regulating defect and morphology engineering for efficiently enhancing the piezocatalytic performances of BiOBr

Cerium-doped bismuth oxybromide (1%, 5% and 10% Ce–BiOBr) piezocatalysts were synthesized. The piezocatalytic activity was efficiently regulated by defect and morphology engineering. Among them, the 5% Ce–BiOBr exhibits the highest piezocatalytic hydrogen production property with an evolution rate of 1147.6 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹, nearly twice that of the original BiOBr. Additionally, the MO dye degradation efficiency of 5% Ce–BiOBr reaches 91.9% within 60 min, with a higher reaction kinetic constant (0.0376 min⁻¹) that was 6.1 times larger than that of pure BiOBr. These outstanding performances of 5% Ce–BiOBr surpass those of most other piezocatalytic material systems.