Photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes with hierarchical Bi2O2CO3 microstructures under visible-light

Abstract

A facile one-step hydrothermal method was developed to synthesize novel hierarchical rose-like Bi₂O₂CO₃ microstructures. The physico-chemical properties of the as-synthesized catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, N₂ adsorption–desorption and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. A possible formation mechanism of hierarchical Bi₂O₂CO₃ microspheres was proposed. The photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared samples was evaluated toward degradation of rhodamine B, and mixed aqueous solutions containing methylene blue and methyl orange under visible-light. Compared to Bi₂O₂CO₃ and Bi₂WO₆ nanosheets, hierarchical rose-like Bi₂O₂CO₃ microspheres show enhanced photocatalytic activity. The observed photocatalytic performance was attributed to the synergetic effects of particle morphology, average crystallite size, specific surface area, pore structure, and exposed two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets with dominant {001} facets of 3D hierarchical rose-like Bi₂O₂CO₃ microspheres.