Three dimensional Z-scheme (BiO)2CO3/MoS2 with enhanced visible light photocatalytic NO removal

Abstract

The Z-scheme photocatalyst systems, with the redox ability of photogenerated electrons and holes unchanged and the efficient separate of carriers, have been under extensive investigation. Herein, we developed a facile method to prepare three dimensional Z-scheme (BiO)2CO3/MoS2 photocatalysts. Due to the enhanced visible light absorption, fast electrons and holes separate and transfer, the resulting three dimensional (BiO)2CO3/MoS2 photocatalysts exhibited high visible photocatalytic activity in the removal of NO in air, which exceeded those of the pristine (BiO)2CO3 and MoS2. Electron spin resonance trapping results indicated that h+ and O2− were the main reactive species for NO removal. Although (BiO)2CO3 is a n-type semiconductor while MoS2 is a p-type semiconductor, a unique Z-scheme electron/hole transport mechanism instead of the p-n junction mechanism was proposed for the interfacial interaction between MoS2 and (BiO)2CO3 under visible light irradiation. The present work reveals a unique 3D Z-scheme photocatalyst system with p- and n-type semiconductors, and opens up new opportunities in designing hybrid photocatalysts with enhanced photocatalytic properties.