2D BiOCl Research Articles

Visible light response SnFe2O4/BiOCl microspheres: Sysnthesis, magnetical and photocatalytic properties

The current two-dimensional (2D) BiOCl photocatalyst generally suffer from poor photocatalytic performance and low recovery efficiency, which is caused by its small size and response to UV-light only. In this paper, magnetic recyclable SnFe2O4/BiOCl (labelled as SFO/BOC) nanospheres with excellent photocatalytic properties (86 %TC, 91 %CIP) were successfully synthesized by a two-step solvothermal method for the first time and used for photocatalytic degradation of antibiotics. The results showed that SFO/BOC microspheres had high photodegradation efficiency (86.64 % and 90.68 %) and cyclic stability (74.63 % and 80.78 % after 5 cycles) for TC and CIP under visible light irradiation for 1 h. The photodegradation mechanism of SFO/BOC was discussed by the radical trapping experiments. This study provides a new type of photocatalytic materials for the development of high efficiency photocatalyst with excellent magnetic recovery.

2D/2D Ni-MOF/BiOCl S-scheme heterojunction with boosted charge transfer and photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline

Constructing S-scheme heterojunction with boosted charge separation efficiency and high photoredox ability is a promising strategy in photocatalytic wastewater treatment. Herein, we report a novel S-scheme photocatalyst composed of two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets (NSs) of Ni-based metal-organic framework (Ni-MOF) and 2D BiOCl NSs. Such a unique 2D/2D stacking structure affords a large contact area at the interface, which promotes electron transfer and ensures the construction of S-scheme heterojunction between Ni-MOF and BiOCl. Benefitting from the efficient charge transfer and sufficient redox ability, the developed Ni-MOF/BiOCl heterojunctions exhibit enhanced photocatalytic performance for tetracycline (TC) degradation. Especially, the optimum 0.1Ni-MOF/BiOCl catalyst achieves a remarkable TC removal rate constant of 0.00274 min−1, 7.21 folds larger than that of single BiOCl (k = 0.00038 min−1). This study offers an ideal strategy for designing and fabricating novel S-scheme heterojunction photocatalysts with applicability in wastewater treatment

Enhanced photocatalytic CO2 conversion over 0D/2D CsPbBr3/BiOCl S-scheme heterojunction via boosting charge separation.

The stable contact of heterogeneous interfaces and the substantial exposure of active sites are crucial for enhancing the photocatalytic performance of semiconductor catalysts. However, most reported two-dimensional (2D)/2D CsPbBr3 and BiOCl heterostructures are fabricated using electrostatic self-assembly methods, which exhibit significant deficiencies in precise interface quality control and effective active site exposure. In this study, we fabricate a zero-dimensional (0D)/2D CsPbBr3/BiOCl heterojunction via a two-step calcination method, achieving an efficient direct S-scheme configuration. Optimizing interfacial contact and band alignment between CsPbBr3 quantum dots and BiOCl nanosheets enhances cross-plane charge transfer, promoting superior charge separation. This 0D/2D CsPbBr3/BiOCl heterojunction exhibits enhanced carrier mobility and high conversion rates without cocatalysts or sacrificial agents. The mechanism underlying the accelerated S-scheme charge transfer is comprehensively elucidated through a combination of analytical techniques and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. This study offers a novel approach for managing charge carrier segregation and mobility in CO2 reduction photocatalysts.

Optimization of Intercalated 2D BiOCl Sheets into Bi2WO6 Flowers for Photocatalytic NH3 Production and Antibiotic Pollutant Degradation.

Photocatalytic N2 fixation is a complex reaction, thereby prompting researchers to design and analyze highly efficient materials. Herein, one-pot hydrothermal Bi2WO6-BiOCl (BW-BiOCl) heterojunctions were synthesized by varying the molar ratio of tungsten: chlorine precursor. Major morphological transformations in BiOCl were observed wherein it turned from thick sheets ∼230 nm in pure BiOCl to ∼30 nm in BW-BiOCl. This was accompanied by extensive growth of {001} facets verified from X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) analyses. A p-n heterojunction was formed between Bi2WO6 and BiOCl evidenced via photoluminescence (PL), time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL), photocurrent response, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) analyses. The formation of heterojunction between Bi2WO6 and BiOCl led to the reduction of the work function in the BW-BiOCl 0.25 hybrid confirmed via ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) analysis. BW-BiOCl 0.25 could produce ammonia up to 345.1 μmol·L-1·h-1 owing to the formation of a robust heterojunction with an S-scheme carrier transport mechanism. Recycle tests resulted in no loss in N2 reduction activities with post-catalytic analysis, showcasing the high stability of the synthesized heterojunction. Novel performance was owed to its excellent chemisorption of N2 gas on the heterojunction surface verified by N2-temperature programmed desorption (TPD). BW-BiOCl 0.25 also displayed a superior rate constant of 3.03 × 10-2 min-1 for 90 min CIP degradation time, higher than pristine BiOCl and Bi2WO6. Post-photocatalytic Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy of BW-BiOCl 0.25 revealed the presence of C-H stretching peaks in the range of 2850-2960 cm-1 due to adsorbed CIP and methanol species in CIP degradation and N2 fixation, respectively. This also confirmed the enhanced adsorption of reacting species onto the heterojunction surface.

Design of lateral and vertical Bi4O5I2/BiOCl heterojunctions with different charge migration pathway for efficient photoredox activity

As 2D heterojunction photocatalysts, lateral heterojunctions (LHs) formed based on chemical bonding generally exhibit much higher photocarrier separation efficiency than vertical heterojunctions (VHs) formed by van der Waals bonds. However, little is known about the different detailed interfacial structures and photocarrier separation mechanisms of the two heterojunctions. Herein, 2D BiOCl and Bi4O5I2 were selected as model building blocks to construct BiOCl/Bi4O5I2 VHs and LHs. The LHs with direct charge carrier transport channels show stronger interfacial electric field and higher charge transfer efficiency than the VHs. The photogenerated charge carrier migration pathway in the LHs follows a Z-scheme model, while the VHs fits a type II model. As a result, the BiOCl/Bi4O5I2 LHs exhibited higher redox performance than the VHs, which is 1.55, 1.56 and 2.1 times better for H2 production, Cr(VI) photoreduction and phenol photodegradation, respectively. This study demonstrates a new approach to constructing highly efficient facet-dependent 2D heterojunction photocatalysts.

Ultrathin Two-Dimensional BiOCl-Bi2 S3 -Cu2 S Ternary Heterostructures with Enhanced LSPR effect for NIR Photonic Bacterial Disinfection.

Photonic disinfection, particularly near-infrared (NIR) light triggered antibacterial, has emerged as a highly promising solution for combating pathogenic microbes due to its spatiotemporal operability, safety, and low cost of apparatus. However, it remains challenging to construct NIR-responsive antibacterial agents with high light-converting efficacy and elucidate synergistic mechanisms. In this work, ultrathin two-dimensional (2D) BiOCl-Bi2 S3 -Cu2 S ternary heterostructures that can efficiently kill drug-resistant bacteria were synthesized by doping 0D Bi2 S3 and Cu2 S nanoparticles in the 2D BiOCl nanosheets via a facile one-pot hydrothermal method. Notably, the incorporation of Cu2 S nanoparticles bestows strong NIR light-harvesting capability to the composite nanosheets due to their localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). Upon NIR light illumination, the BiOCl-Bi2 S3 -Cu2 S nanosheets can achieve enhanced photonic hyperthermia and reaction oxygen species (ROS) generation, serving as single light-activated bi-functional photothermal/photodynamic therapeutics. High-speed hot electrons and large local electronic fields caused by LSPR might play an important role in thermal vibrations and effective carrier separations, respectively. Benefiting from the unique ternary heterostructures, both the photothermal conversion and ROS generation efficacy of BiOCl-Bi2 S3 -Cu2 S nanosheets are significantly improved compared to the binary BiOCl-Cu2 S or BiOCl-Bi2 S3 nanosheets. Accordingly, the ternary composite nanosheets can effectively kill bacteria via the NIR-driven photonic disinfection mechanism. This work presents a new type of 2D composite nanosheets with ternary heterostructures for NIR photonic disinfection.

Porous edge confinement: High carrier potential and low activation energy barrier synergistically boosting the efficiency of selective photocatalytic CO2 conversion

Catalysts which allow directional transfer of photogenerated electrons to catalytic sites are crucial to efficient photocatalytic CO2 reduction. Herein, 2D BiOCl porous nanosheets (BOC-PNS) are prepared by triblock polymer (F127) assisted mechanical ball milling. The main exposed plane is (001) on the BOC-PNS surface and the porous structure increases the edge (110) facet. The (001)/(110) heterojunction enhances directional migration and separation of photogenerated carriers. In situ Raman scattering, in situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, 3D FDTD simulation and theoretical calculations reveal that the BOC (001) plane is enriched with directionally migrating photogenerated electrons and provides the primary active sites to bridge adsorption-activated CO2 molecules consequently producing a smaller energy barrier for the intermediate product of *COOH. Weak CO adsorption on the BOC (001) plane further promotes CO2 reduction. Upon exposure to simulated sunlight, the CO yield of BOC-PNS is enhanced by the rich edge confinement effect reaching 28.2 μmol g−1 h−1, which is 2.1 and 2.8 times that of the BOC nanosheets (13.5 μmol g−1 h−1) and nanoplates (9.9 μmol g−1 h−1), respectively.

Boosting photocatalytic CO2 reduction by tuning photogenerated carrier kinetics in two-dimensional WOx/BiOCl S-scheme heterojunction with oxygen vacancies

Photocatalytic CO2 reduction driven by sustainable solar energy is a highly desirable route to achieve carbon recycling, to which charge separation in photocatalysts holds the key. In this work, two-dimensional (2D) WO3·H2O nanosheets with rich oxygen vacancies (Vo-WOx) were combined with 2D BiOCl nanosheets to form a 2D/2D Vo-WOx/BiOCl S-scheme heterojunction by a self-assembly process. The 2D/2D stacked structure combined with the introduction of oxygen vacancies in Vo-WOx could improve the light harvesting of the designed photocatalytic system. The dual transfer pathways in the S-scheme junction were induced by the fact that the photogenerated electrons on the conduction band and defect energy level of the Vo-WOx transfer across the interface to combine with the BiOCl, leading to an improved kinetic process of photogenerated carriers. Moreover, the S-scheme configuration can retain a strong redox potential for satisfying the thermodynamic requirement of CO2 reduction. As a result, the optimized 30Vo-WOx/BiOCl composite can achieve the highest CO yield rate of 8.82 μmol h−1 from CO2 reduction without any sacrifice reagents, which was 4.69 and 3.08 times higher than that of pure BiOCl and WO3/BiOCl without oxygen vacancy. This work provides a new view of defect engineering in S-scheme heterojunction for pursuing a highly efficient photocatalytic CO2 reduction system.

The photocatalytic degradation of oxytetracycline using 2D and 3D Bi5O7I and BiOCl under visible light irradiation – Optimization of the reaction parameters

Bismuth oxyhalides are a group of efficient photocatalysts to achieve the complete degradation of organic pollutants in water under UV-A/visible light irradiation. In this work, BiOCl and Bi5O7I were synthesized through different procedures to obtain 2D (nanoneedles) and 3D (microspheres and nanoflakes) structures. The structural, chemical and optical properties of the materials were characterized as well as their photocatalytic activity to degrade the antibiotic oxytetracycline under visible light irradiation. Bi5O7I nanoflakes completely degraded oxytetracycline within 300 min of UV-A/visible light irradiation while BiOCl materials achieved only 80% of removal. The pH, initial concentration of oxytetracycline and the catalyst dosage were optimized using the Box-Behnken design of experiments. At pH of 9, irrespective of dosage and initial concentration of oxytetracycline, the complete degradation was achieved after < 10 min of irradiation, with an initial rate constant of 0.36 min−1. Under the optimal reaction conditions, Bi5O7I nanoflakes demonstrated to efficiently remove the target pollutant in tap water through three consecutive reaction cycles, displaying the potential of this material to be tested in upscaled systems.

Resistive switching in 2D bismuth oxyhalide nanosheets for nonvolatile memory and emulation of leaky integrate-and-fire functions

The resistive switching (RS) behaviors have been widely studied in a large number of two-dimensional (2D) materials. Bismuth oxyhalides have emerged as a typical ternary 2D layered material recently. However, the studies focusing on the RS behaviors in 2D bismuth oxyhalides are still limited. Herein, the RS behaviors in 2D BiOX (X = Cl, Br and Cl + Br) nanosheets have been systematically studied. 2D BiOX nanosheets are exfoliated from their bulk materials which are synthesized by a hydrothermal method. Vertical memristors with Pt/BiOX/Pt sandwiched structures have been fabricated for RS measurements. Among them, 2D BiOCl nanosheet has no RS behaviors. BiOBr nanosheet demonstrates non-volatile bipolar RS behaviors with a large ON/OFF ratio (∼105), long time retention (104 s) and good endurance (280 cycles) as well as good environmental stability, suggesting potential applications in non-volatile memory. Furthermore, BiOBr0.7Cl0.3 nanosheet shows volatile threshold switching (TS) behaviors with the ON/OFF ratio up to 105. The device with TS behaviors can be utilized to emulate the leaky integrate-and-fire (LIF) functions in biological synapses. This work demonstrates a new material with non-volatile or volatile RS behaviors, providing a new TS device for emulation of LIF activity.

Engineering bandgap structure of BiOCl nanoplates with oxygen vacancies for accelerated photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B

2D BiOCl nanoplates with exposed (001) crystal surface were synthesized via a simple solvothermal method and the photodegradation property can be improved via adjusting volume ratios of ethylene glycol (EG)/absolute ethyl alcohol (EA). The photocatalytic results suggest that the BiOCl prepared by using the ratios (1:2) of EG/EA (BOC-EG:2EA) with exposed (001) plane displays excellent photocatalytic performance and the removal efficiency of RhB reaches 99% for only 10 min under visible light. The enormous improvement of removal efficiency originates from existence of the oxygen vacancies, the narrow band gap, and limited recombination rate of photoexcited electron-hole pairs. Additionally, the superoxide radical anions (·O2-) and photogenerated holes (h+) are confirmed to be the primary active species to accelerate the photoactivity. This work provides a new perspective to fabricate high-efficient photocatalysts used in relative wastewater treatment system.

Amorphous iron oxides anchored on BiOCl nanoplates as robust catalysts for high-performance photo-Fenton oxidation

Semiconductor supported iron oxides are highly promising catalysts to remove organic pollutants in photo-Fenton. Development of robust composite catalysts with both high activity and stability is essential. In this work, amorphous iron oxide layers are uniformly and tightly anchored on two-dimensional (2D) BiOCl nanoplates through post precipitation-deposition and subsequent low-temperature thermal treatment at 150–350 °C. A low iron loading amount (1–2 wt.%) is sufficient to make the resulted composite (BiOCl-Fe) catalysts superior in photo-Fenton oxidation of phenol (10 mg/L) with high mineralization efficiency (up to about 80% in 60 min). The low-temperature thermal treatment can significantly enhance the stability of catalysts with much less iron leached and high photo-Fenton performance maintained. The intimate contact between the amorphous iron oxide layers and the 2D BiOCl nanoplates could guarantee the fluent electron transfer and efficient activation of H2O2 at interfaces. Compared with the pristine BiOCl, the BiOCl-Fe catalysts possess faster separation of the charge carriers. The predominant active species turns from O2•– in photocatalysis to HO• in the photo-Fenton catalysis. This research could provide enhanced understanding on the synthesis of robust catalysts and the structure optimization of BiOCl supported iron oxides for photo-Fenton.

Zn0.5Cd0.5S nanoparticle modified 2D BiOCl as solid-state Z-scheme photocatalyst for enhanced rhodamine B removal

In this work, novel Z-scheme Zn0.5Cd0.5S/BiOCl (ZCS-BC) heterostructures are established with a facile hydrothermal method. Zn0.5Cd0.5S (ZCS) nanoparticles are loaded on the surface of BiOCl sheets uniformly and have a close contact with BiOCl. Compared with pure ZCS and BiOCl, ZCS-BC heterojunctions show more efficient photocatalytic behavior for rhodamine B (RhB) decomposition under simulative sunlight. The obtained 15%ZCS-BC heterojunction has optimal photocatalytic activity, and the RhB removal efficiency exceeds 98% when exposed to light source for 40 min. The successful construction of Z-scheme heterostructure between ZCS and BiOCl enhances the migration abilities of photogenerated carriers, leading to the reinforcement of photocatalytic property of ZCS-BC. Additionally, the 15%ZCS-BC heterojunction also exhibits desired photodegradation stability after four cycles. In the photocatalytic reaction system, photo-induced holes (h+) and superoxide radical (·O2-) play a critical role, followed by hydroxyl radical (·OH). A probable photocatalytic mechanism of ZCS-BC composite towards RhB decomposition is discussed.

Self-doping induced oxygen vacancies and lattice strains for synergetic enhanced upconversion luminescence of Er3+ ions in 2D BiOCl nanosheets.

Rare earth (RE) ions combined with two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors can exhibit unexpected optical properties. However, fluorescence quenching has always been inevitable due to defects associated with the synthesis and doping of 2D materials. In this work, we reported an efficient upconversion (UC) enhancement of Er3+ doped BiOCl nanosheets, utilizing a defect engineering strategy conversely rather than eliminating defects. Experiments and theoretical calculations provide evidence that oxygen vacancies (OVs) and lattice strain are simultaneously formed in the BiOCl:Er3+ nanosheets through self-doping of Cl- ions. Under 980 nm excitation, samples doped with 300 mol% Cl- ions exhibit the best luminescent emission, and the green and red UC emissions are enhanced 3.5 and 15 times, respectively. We showed that the OVs in the 2D semiconductor can act as energy bridges to transfer charges to the Er3+ energy level, enriching the electron population at the excited levels; while, the lattice strain enhances the energy transfer and charge accumulation, which synergistically enhance the UC luminescence. This research provides a new insight into the development of defect engineering for UC PL in 2D nanomaterials.

Enhanced Production of Formic Acid in Electrochemical CO2 Reduction over Pd-Doped BiOCl Nanosheets.

Bismuth oxyhalides (BiOX, X = F, Cl, Br, I) are emerging energy materials because of their remarkable catalytic activity. The BiOX compounds usually have a tetragonal type crystal structure with unique layered morphology consisting of [X-Bi-O-Bi-X] sheets. Although the BiOX nanosheets exposed with {001} facets perform superior photoactivity, there is lack of understanding about their capability in the electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR). Herein, we adopt wet-chemical syntheses to make 2D BiOCl and Pd-doped BiOCl nanosheets for CO2RR. In the results, formic acid is the only one kind of product converted from CO2 along with H2 gas from water reduction over both BiOCl and Pd-doped BiOCl nanosheets. By thorough analyses with ex situ and in situ spectroscopy, the results reflect that (1) metallic Bi0 atoms generated by the applied negative potentials serve as the catalytic sites for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and CO2RR and (2) the existence of doped Pd ions in the BiOCl structure reduces the barrier of charge transfer over the nanosheets, which enhances HER and CO2RR activities. We believe that the observations are important references for making catalysts toward CO2RR performance.

In-situ fabrication of novel BiOCl/Bi5O7I 2D/3D heterostructures with enhanced photocatalytic activity

A novel BiOCl/Bi5O7I (BOC-BOI) heterojunction was prepared by growing ultrathin 2D BiOCl nanosheets in situ on the surface of 3D Bi5O7I microspheres. The 2D/3D heterostructure of BOC-BOI composites inhibited the agglomeration of BiOCl nanosheets, and benefited the multiple reflection and refraction of light, which greatly enhanced the absorption and utilization of light. The 50-BOC-BOI composite showed 97.7% degradation efficiency of rhodamine B (RhB) after 70 min Xe light irradiation. And its apparent degradation rate constant (k) was 0.0377 min−1, being 4.9 and 15.1 times than that of pristine BiOCl (0.0077 min−1) and Bi5O7I (0.0025 min−1), respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of BOC-BOI composites was attributed to stronger light capture ability, more abundant active sites and higher charge carrier separation efficiency, confirmed by UV-Vis DRS, SEM, TEM, BET, Zeta potential and electrochemical characterizations. The free radical capture experiments showed that the main active species in this system were holes (h+) and superoxide free radicals (·O2−). Combining the results of UV-Vis DRS and Mott-Schottky test, a reasonable type II heterojunction mechanism was proposed.

Simultaneous Manipulation of Bulk Excitons and Surface Defects for Ultrastable and Highly Selective CO2 Photoreduction.

The objective of photocatalytic CO2 reduction (PCR) is to achieve high selectivity for a single energy-bearing product with high efficiency and stability. The bulk configuration usually determines charge carrier kinetics, whereas surface atomic arrangement defines the PCR thermodynamic pathway. Concurrent engineering of bulk and surface structures is therefore crucial for achieving the goal of PCR. Herein, an ultrastable and highly selective PCR using homogeneously doped BiOCl nanosheets synthesized via an inventive molten strategy is presented. With B2 O3 as both the molten salt and doping precursor, this new doping approach ensures boron (B) doping from the surface into the bulk with dual functionalities. Bulk B doping mitigates strong excitonic effects confined in 2D BiOCl by significantly reducing exciton binding energies, whereas surface-doped B atoms reconstruct the BiOCl surface by extracting lattice hydroxyl groups, resulting in intimate B-oxygen vacancy (B-OV) associates. These exclusive B-OV associates enable spontaneous CO2 activation, suppress competitive hydrogen evolution and promote the proton-coupled electron transfer step by stabilizing *COOH for selective CO generation. As a result, the homogeneous B-doped BiOCl nanosheets exhibit 98% selectivity for CO2 -to-CO reduction under visible light, with an impressive rate of 83.64µmol g-1 h-1 and ultrastability for long-term testing of 120 h.

Single-crystalline 2D BiOCl nanorods decorated with 2D MoS2 nanosheets for visible light-driven photocatalytic detoxification of organic and inorganic pollutants

Visible light-driven photocatalytic degradation is one of the promising ways to deal with the major problem of water pollution. This study involves one-step, fast, in-situ preparation of BiOCl/MoS2 (2D/2D) heterostructure via microwave irradiations. The photocatalytic performance of BiOCl/MoS2 composite with different weight ratios (1:1, 3:1, and 1:3) have been evaluated for degradation of organic (methylene blue (MB) dye, fipronil pesticide) and inorganic pollutants (Cr(VI)) along with real industrial wastewater under visible light irradiation. XRD, XPS, FESEM, HRTEM, and SAED analysis indicate the formation of single-crystalline nanorods with a high aspect ratio of 1:10. The composites possess high surface area (~40 m2/g) with lower charge recombination and high visible light absorption tendency due to lower band gap (2.30 eV) energy. The high synergistic interaction (~2.29) between BiOCl and MoS2 results in enhancement of degradation activity which shows 94%, 89%, and 90% removal of MB, fipronil, and Cr(VI) metal, respectively by BiOCl/MoS2 (1:3) catalyst. The optimum conditions to get maximum degradation efficiency were determined by varying different reaction parameters like pH, catalyst dose, and illumination area. Radical trapping experiments indicate that holes and hydroxyl radicals had a dominant role in the degradation process. The catalyst is highly stable and reusable as confirmed by the reusability studies. The photocatalytic treatment of industrial wastewater without any physico-chemical pretreatment showed 75% COD and 63% TOC removal under visible light, which indicates high practical efficiency of the catalyst. The current study validates that the BiOCl/MoS2 composites with superior characteristic properties can be efficiently used for wastewater treatment under natural light.

Fabrication of oxygen vacancy-rich 3D/2D BiO1-XBr/BiOCl heterostructures towards efficient charge separation for enhanced photodegradation activity

In this work, oxygen vacancy (OV)-rich 3D/2D BiO1-XBr/BiOCl heterostructures were prepared successfully via a simple hydrothermal treatment method. The photocatalytic degradation activities for a series of BiO1-XBr/BiOCl composites were evaluated through visible-light-driven tetracycline (TC) degradation. The result demonstrated that suitable ratio of BiO1-XBr/BiOCl (BB-60) showed significantly improved photodegradation activity. The improved photocatalytic performance was mainly attributed to the synergistic effect of 3D/2D heterojunction and OVs. The relatively small 2D BiOCl nanosheets deposit on 3D BiO1-XBr to form 3D/2D heterostructure with more contact areas and active sites, which improve the separation of photogenerated charges. In addition, rich OVs can not only promote the separation of electron-hole pair but also improve the capability of visible light absorption for photocatalysts. The possible photocatalytic reaction mechanism of BB-60 was also revealed by active species trapping experiments. Finally, this study brought a new opportunity to rationally design OV-rich 3D/2D heterojunction for the enhanced photocatalytic ability.

Vertical growth of 2D BiOCl nanosheets on FeOCl nanoplates as an efficient photo-Fenton catalyst for phenol degradation

Vertical growth of 2D BiOCl nanosheets on FeOCl nanoplates as an efficient photo-Fenton catalyst for phenol degradation