Photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants by 3D flower-like g-C3N4/Ag3PO4/Bi2O2CO3 and its effect on the growth of lettuce seedlings

Abstract

Herein, the g-C3N4/Ag3PO4/Bi2O2CO3 heterojunction photocatalyst was successfully constructed by co-precipitation methods. In the three mixed systems, tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH) was blended with methylene blue (MB), methylene orange (MO), and chlortetracycline (CTC), respectively, and the composite photocatalyst exhibited high photocatalytic activity under natural conditions. Experimental and theoretical analysis confirmed that the ABC-10 shows the highest photocatalytic activity for TCH (4.97 times higher than that of pure Bi2O2CO3), with significant stability and good repeatability. The phytotoxicity test of photocatalytic treated TCH solution was evaluated towards seed germination rate, root length and shoot length. Especially, the degradation mechanism of tetracycline was revealed in depth via trapping experiments and photoelectrochemical characterizations. The constructed heterojunction structure can effectively enhance the separation, transfer and synergistic effect of the support to further enhance the photocatalytic performance. This work proposed an efficient way to prepare a green-friendly and low-cost photocatalyst with a heterojunction structure, which will be effective for wastewater purification.