Visible Light‐Induced Photoeletrochemical and Antimicrobial Properties of Hierarchical CuBi2O4 by Facile Hydrothermal Synthesis

Abstract

AbstractNarrow bandgap semiconductor CuBi2O4 microstructures such as three dimensional hierarchical microspheres, micro‐flowers, one dimensional microrods and nanorods were fabricated through a facile hydrothermal synthesis approach by systematically changing the synthesis conditions. Their optical properties and photocatalytical performances under visible light illumination were characterized. The hierarchical micro‐flower shaped CuBi2O4 sample showed a high photodecay rate of 0.114 ± 0.002 h−1 with 1 mg/ml CuBi2O4 concentration for methylene blue (30 μM). Under the illumination of an AM 1.5G solar simulator, a 0.02 mA/cm2 stable cathodic photocurrent density was observed at a low negative bias voltage (‐0.25 V vs (Ag/AgCl)). The micro‐flower shaped CuBi2O4 sample also showed a high antibacterial effect against Escherichia coli, with ∼ 93 % bacteria reduction after 6 h illumination by a commercial white LED light (10 mW/cm2). These results indicate that CuBi2O4 can be a promising candidate for visible light driven energy conversion and antimicrobial applications.