An efficient construction method of S-scheme Ag2CrO4/ZnFe2O4 nanofibers heterojunction toward enhanced photocatalytic and antibacterial activity

Abstract

The combination of multiple optimization methods has become one of the hot strategies for the development of novel photocatalysts. Therefore, in this paper, the S-scheme Ag2CrO4/ZnFe2O4 (ACO/ZFO) nanofibers heterojunction photocatalyst is successfully prepared by co-precipitation method by loading ACO particles on the surface of ZFO nanofibers. It is found that ACO/ZFO composites not only have the advantages of higher specific surface area and more exposed active sites, but also the successful construction of S-scheme heterojunction effectively inhibits the recombination of photoelectron-hole pairs and generates more active groups, showing its superior redox ability. ACO/ZFO composites have excellent photocatalytic performance under the enhancement of multiple properties. The results showed that under the simulated visible light, the 40%ACO/ZFO composite with the best photocatalytic activity has the highest sterilization rate of 98.7%, which is 2.1 times and 3.3 times of ACO and ZFO, respectively, and the degradation rate of MB is 3.1 times and 4.7 times of ACO and ZFO, respectively. The mechanism of S-scheme ACO/ZFO nanofibers heterojunction photocatalyst was investigated by free radical experiment. This work provides new insights into the design and development of S-scheme heterojunctions for environmental remediation and sterilization.