Novel flower-like (Bi(Bi2S3)9I3)2/3 nanostructure as efficient photocatalyst for photocatalytic desulfurization of benzothiophene under visible light irradiation

Abstract

Here, we report the preparation of hierarchical flower-like (Bi(Bi2S3)9I3)2/3 nanostructures that acts as a strong photocatalyst in the desulfurization of benzothiophene. We optimized the reaction time, type of capping agent and reflux temperature to tune the shape of porous flower-like (Bi(Bi2S3)9I3)2/3 nanostructures to achieve the highest desulfurization performance. We investigated the characteristic shape, size, purity, and optical response of the flower-shape nanostructures using XRD, EDS, FESEM, UV–Vis-DRS analysis. The flower-like (Bi(Bi2S3)9I3)2/3 nanostructures showed a significant photocatalytic property in desulfurization of benzothiophene as a model fuel. The hierarchical flower-like (Bi(Bi2S3)9I3)2/3 photocatalyst with an energy gap of 1.15 eV, exhibits a 92% photocatalytic desulfurization performance after 2 h of visible light irradiation. The (Bi(Bi2S3)9I3)2/3 nanostructures show a high photocatalytic reproducibility after 4 rounds of exposure. We proposed a photo-oxidation mechanism based on the active species scavenging, which revealed the role of photo-produced h+ and O2− species as essential in the photocatalytic desulfurization process. These findings provide a new prospect and design strategy for the development of efficient photocatalysts in desulfurization process.