A facile single-pot synthesis of WO3/AgCl composite with enhanced photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical performance under visible-light irradiation

Abstract

In this work, a visible-light-driven WO3/AgCl composite photocatalyst was synthesized by a facile single-pot hydrothermal method using α-Ag2WO4 and HCl as precursors. A series of WO3/AgCl composite photocatalysts were synthesized with the addition of different amount (0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 mL) of 2 M HCl solution to α-Ag2WO4. Afterwards, the photocatalytic abilities of the WO3/AgCl composite photocatalysts were investigated towards the photodegradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible-light illumination. Results show that the WO3/AgCl composite exhibits an outstanding photocatalytic activity as compared with those pure WO3 and AgCl. This enhancement may be due to the fast charge separation efficiency of the photoexcited electron-holes pairs. However, among various composites, the WO3/AgCl composite obtained with the addition of 1 mL of HCl is found to display the highest photocatalytic activity. This optimized composite shows a complete degradation of RhB within 30 min. Furthermore, the WO3/AgCl composite has an excellent photostability. Finally, a possible photocatalytic degradation mechanism of RhB degradation using WO3/AgCl composite is also proposed. Therefore, these high photocatalytic activity and stability results reveal that the WO3/AgCl composite is a promising material for wastewater treatment and other environmental remediation applications.