Photo-electrochemical and photocatalytic properties of hierarchical flower-like BiOI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposites synthesized by co-precipitation method

The binary flower-like BiOI/CoFe2O4 photocatalysts with magnetic retrievability were successfully synthesized via coprecipitation method. The effects of composite ratio on the microstructure, morphology, optical, photo electrochemical and photocatalytic properties of the samples were studied. The experimental results show that BiOI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposites contain tetragonal structure BiOI and cubic spinel structure CoFe2O4 with good crystallization. Spherical CoFe2O4 nanoparticles are uniformly decorated on the surface of BiOI nanosheets to establish hierarchical flower-like 3DBiOI/CoF2O4 heterojunctions. BiOI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposites show excellent visible light absorption ability. PL spectra show the intensity decrease for BiOI/CoFe2O4 nano composites. BiOI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposites can promote the separation of photon-generated carriers, improve the migration efficiency, and improve the redox activity of nanocomposites. BiOI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposites exhibit better photocatalytic activity during the process of degrading the RhB dye solution under the irradiation of simulated visible light. The degradation efficiency of BiOI/CFO-3 photocatalysts is 80.24% after 3 cycles, and exhibit better recyclable stability. Also, O-center dot(2)- is the main reactive species in the degradation process, which plays a crucial role in the RhB degradation.

Automated summary

Binary flower-like BiOI/CoFe2O4 photocatalysts with magnetic retrievability were successfully synthesized via coprecipitation method, showing excellent photocatalytic activity and visible light absorption ability, demonstrating good degradation efficiency towards RhB dye.