Facile Synthesis of Ag/Ag 3 PO 4 Composites with Highly Efficient and Stable Photocatalytic Performance under Visible Light

The Ag/Ag 3 PO 4 composites with various shapes (spheres, polyhedral, and microcubes) were synthesized by a facile precipitation method and a subsequent light‐reduction route at room temperature. The as‐prepared Ag/Ag 3 PO 4 composites were characterized in detail by X‐ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectra, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, UV–vis diffuse reflection, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The growth processes of different morphologies Ag/Ag 3 PO 4 composites are also discussed. The decomposition test of rhodamine B (RhB) indicated that the Ag/Ag 3 PO 4 composites enhanced the photocatalytic performance compared with pure Ag 3 PO 4 , which was attributed to the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) of Ag nanoparticles and the stability of the photocatalysts. Moreover, uniform cubes of Ag/Ag 3 PO 4 showed the highest photocatalytic activity and could completely degrade RhB in 7 min, which could be primarily ascribed to the cubic structure of Ag/Ag 3 PO 4 with strong visible‐light absorption and efficient separation of the photo‐generated electrons and holes. Furthermore, the possible photocatalytic mechanism is also discussed.