Photocatalytic performance of the SiO2 sphere/n-type TiO2/p-type CuBiS2 composite catalysts coated with different contents of Ag nanoparticles under ultraviolet and visible light irradiations

Abstract

Photocatalytic performance of the SiO2 sphere/n-type TiO2/p-type CuBiS2 composite catalysts with different contents of silver nanoparticles (abbreviated as SiO2/n-TiO2/p-CuBiS2/Ag) toward the photodegradation of Acid Black 1 (AB 1) dye under ultraviolet (UV) and visible light was investigated. The composite catalyst spheres were analyzed their crystal structure, microstructure, optical absorbance capabilities, and photodegradation capabilities of AB 1 dye. The best photodegradation performances of the 20 mg composite powder with only ~5 mg photoactive catalysts showed the degradation of AB 1 dye in 5 min under UV and 60 min under visible light irradiations. The concept of composite catalyst with numerous nano p–n diodes and its photodegradation mechanism were proposed.