Design and fabrication of g-C3N4/Bi2S3 heterojunction photocatalysts for efficient organic pollutant degradation and antibacterial activity

Abstract

Developing highly effective photocatalysts is essential in environmental remediation and sustainable manufacturing. In this study, a carbon-based semiconductor nanocomposite (g-C3N4/Bi2S3) was effectively prepared via a hydrothermal approach. Comprehensive physicochemical characterizations were active to assess the morphological, structural, and photochemical attributes of the fabricated g-C3N4/Bi2S3 nanocomposites using microscopic and spectrophotometric analyses while the intermediate products formation was assessed through GC-MS analysis. Photocatalytic degradation performance was evaluated against Reactive Black 5 (RB5) and Indigo Carmine (IC) dyes. The g-C3N4/Bi2S3 nanocomposites exhibited remarkable photodegradation efficiency compared with pure g-C3N4 and Bi2S3 catalysts, achieving 95.6 % degradation for IC and 97.5 % for RB5 after 120 min of Ultraviolet A irradiation (UVA). This excellent photocatalytic activity demonstrates the potential of g-C3N4/Bi2S3 nanocomposites for future employment in visible-light-driven wastewater treatment. The mechanism of g-C3N4/Bi2S3 NCs photocatalysis involves efficient charge separation, active site interactions, electron and hole transfer, and subsequent oxidative removal of organic pollutants, revealing the NCs suitability for sustainable environmental applications. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the g-C3N4/Bi2S3 nanocomposites in combating Streptococcus mutans and Enterococcus faecalis was appraised under UVA light exposure to determine their antibacterial properties.