Enhanced ultraviolet–visible–near infrared driven photocatalytic activity of 1D/0D BiVO4:Er/Yb@Ag/Ag3PO4 Z-scheme heterostructure via a synergetic strategy of plasmonic effect and upconversion luminescence

Abstract

Expanding the spectral response range to near-infrared (NIR) region and improving carrier separation are the two critical strategies to obtain highly efficient photocatalysts for water pollution control. Herein, a new type of photocatalyst one-dimensional/zero-dimensional (1D/0D) BiVO4:Er/Yb@Ag/Ag3PO4 Z-scheme heterostructure with full spectral response is constructed by an electrospinning coupled with an ethylene glycol assisted hydrothermal method. The optimized BiVO4:Er/Yb@Ag/Ag3PO4 heterostructured nanofibers degrade 69.5% (9 h) and 91.3% (30 min) of tetracycline hydrochloride (TC), 76.7% (9 h) and 99.4% (24 min) of methylene blue (MB) and 38.2% (9 h) and 94.5% (60 min) of bisphenol A (BPA) under NIR light and simulated sunlight excitation, respectively. Under NIR light and simulated sunlight excitation, the MB removal efficiencies of the optimal composite are 9.833 and 1.094 times of Ag3PO4 and 20.184 and 11.558 times of BiVO4, respectively. The superior photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the synergistic effects of the unique 1D/0D contact interface, the porous outer wall of BiVO4:Er/Yb nanofibers, Ag bridged Z-scheme heterostructure, upconversion (UC) luminescence and the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect. This makes BiVO4:Er/Yb@Ag/Ag3PO4 heterostructured nanofibers have the advantages of broadened absorption spectrum, abundant active sites, increased specific surface area, fast electron transfer channels, improved carrier separation efficiency, enhanced photocorrosion resistance and stability. This work provides a new insight in designing and constructing high-performance Ag bridged Z-scheme heterostructure photocatalysts with full spectral response for water pollution control.