Quaternary heterostructured Ag-Bi2O2CO3/Bi3.64Mo0.36O6.55/Bi2MoO6 composite: Synthesis and enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity

In this work, a novel quaternary heterostructured Ag-Bi2O2CO3/Bi3.64Mo0.36O6.55/Bi2MoO6 composite was fabricated through a low-temperature solution-phase route. The XRD, SEM, EDX and XPS results indicated the as-prepared sample is a four-phase composite of Bi2O2CO3, Bi3.64Mo0.36O6.55, Bi2MoO6, and Ag. The photocatalytic activities of the as-synthesized samples were evaluated towards the degradation of phenol red aqueous solution. The results showed that the as-synthesized Ag-Bi2O2CO3/Bi3.64Mo0.36O6.55/Bi2MoO6 photocatalysts displayed much higher photocatalytic activities in comparison with pure Bi3.64Mo0.36O6.55, pure Bi2MoO6, and Bi3.64Mo0.36O6.55/Bi2MoO6 composite. Among them, the 2.5% Ag-Bi2O2CO3/Bi3.64Mo0.36O6.55/Bi2MoO6 sample performed the best. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of the composite photocatalyst was attributed predominantly to the efficient separation of photoinduced electrons and holes. In addition, Ag nanoparticles were photodeposited on the surface of the composite to increase visible-light absorption via the surface plasmon resonance, which is also beneficial to the enhancement of photocatalytic performance. The possible photocatalytic mechanism of the quaternary heterostructure was also discussed in detail. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.