The potential application of an efficient MOF-derived visible light-responsive photocatalyst based on Au/C/ZnO for tetracycline antibiotic photodegradation.

Abstract

A series of porous photocatalysts, Au-carbon-doped ZnO (Au/C/ZnO), were synthesized successfully via calcination using MOF-5 as template, with the matrix impregnated with Au nanorods through the seed-mediated method. The catalytic performance was investigated by the photodegradation of tetracycline hydrochloride (TC-HCl). Ninety percent of TC was degraded by Au/C/ZnO sample within 360min under visible light, showing an efficient photocatalytic activity. The enhanced activity was mainly ascribed to the effect of oxygen vacancies produced by C doping during calcination process of MOF-5 and Au nanorods. The density functional theory (DFT) calculation shows that due to the intermediate energy level, the electron-hole pairs generated by photoelectricity transition were transitioned from valence band (VB) to the intermediate energy level, and further to the conduction band (CB) under irradiation. Thus, the separation efficiency of photogenerated carrier was improved in this process. Meanwhile, the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and electromagnetic field effect of Au nanorods which were loaded on the C/ZnO promoted the separation efficiency of change carriers, and this process also provided more hot electrons for free radicals generation. This work provides an efficient method for the design and synthesis of noble metal- and non-metal-doped oxide photocatalysts and provides an effective photocatalytic technique for the antibiotic degradation under visible light, which possesses the huge application potential in the environmental purification.