Bi2O3 and BiOCl electrospun nanosheets and morphology-dependent photocatalytic properties

Abstract

BiOCl and Bi₂O₃ nanosheet like structures were produced by electrospinning. The morphological changes were observed by changing precursor (BiOCl₃ and Bi(NO₃)₃·5H₂O) concentrations. These nanosheets were analyzed by XRD, which reveals that the crystal structures of BiOCl and Bi₂O₃ belonged to tetragonal and beta-phase systems respectively. Both nanostructures were employed for the photodegradation of Alizarin Red S (ARS) dye under UV light (<390 nm) irradiation. BiOCl nanosheet like structures exhibited superior photocatalytic activity (PCA) for the degradation of ARS dye and their half-life was estimated from the kinetic plots of PCA. A plausible reaction mechanism is proposed for the PCA and discussed in detail.