Simultaneous Photocatalytic Reduction of Cr(VI) and Oxidation of Phenol over Monoclinic BiVO sub(4) Under Visible Light Irradiation

The simultaneous photocatalytic reduction of Cr(VI) and oxidation of phenol over monoclinic BiVO sub(4) under visible light irradiation was analyzed. The photocatalytic reduction of Cr(VI) and photocatalytic oxidation of phenol proceeded more rapidly for the coexistence system of phenol and Cr(VI) than for the single process, showing synergetic effect between the oxidation and reduction reactions. For the simultaneous photocatalytic reduction-oxidation process, the first-order kinetic constant of phenol degradation was 0.0314 min super(-1), being about six times higher than that for the photocatalytic process of single phenol. The result revealed the feasibility of using Cr(VI) as the electron scavenger of mBiVO sub(4)-mediated photocatalytic process of phenol degradation, and gave an englightenment to employ other semiconductor with a better visible light response but with a more positive band edge to efficiently degrade organic pollutants.