Synthesis of direct Z-scheme ZnIn2S4@BiOBr-(110) heterojunction structure with high photocatalytic activity

In this article, the novel direct Z-scheme ZnIn 2 S 4 @BiOBr-(110) heterojunction structure was firstly synthesized via simple two-step hydrothermal method. The results of XRD and HRTEM indicated that as-prepared BiOBr mainly exposed high energy (110) facet. Simultaneously, the photoelectrochemical measurement was performed to further investigate the photo-induced carrier separation efficiency. The results indicated that Z-scheme heterojunction structure formed by the loading of ZnIn 2 S 4 nanosheets not only promoted the separation of photogenerated carriers and inhibited fast recombination rate of photogenerated electron–hole pairs of pure BiOBr, but also endowed the composite with better redox activity. The degradation efficiency of RhB by BiOBr loaded with 10 mol% ZnIn 2 S 4 has achieved 98% within 18 min under the irradiation of Xe lamp, which demonstrated that the unique direct Z-scheme ZnIn 2 S 4 @BiOBr-(110) composite photocatalytic materials has the potential application in environmental pollution control and energy conversion.