Novel visible light-responsive graphene oxide/Bi2WO6/starch composite membrane for efficient degradation of ethylene

Highly efficient GO-Bi2WO6/starch composite film were synthesized by casting method and were evaluated for the photocatalytic degradation of gaseous ethylene under visible light. [Display omitted] •A potential fruits packaging material GO-Bi2WO6/starch film was synthesized.•GO-Bi2WO6/starch film exhibited good photocatalytic degradation for ethylene.•Mechanical and thermal properties of starch film was enhanced by doping GO-Bi2WO6. Graphene oxide/Bi2WO6 (GBW) photocatalyst was synthesized using a hydrothermal and surface deposition method. GBW/starch composite films with different graphene oxide (GO) additions (0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1 %) were prepared using a casting method. The GBW photocatalyst and composite starch film were characterized using X-ray diffractometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, synchronous thermal analyzer, and the capacity of photocatalytic degradation of ethylene under visible light was evaluated. The results showed that GBW strengthens the mechanical properties, water vapor resistance and thermal stability of the composite film. Proper introduction of GO can refine lattice size, reduce bandgap and enhance visible light absorption. When the addition of GO was 0.5 %, GBW/starch composite film showed the strongest visible light degradation activity for ethylene, and the rate constant K′ was 9.91 × 10−4 min–1, 4.4 times that of pure Bi2WO6. The composite film also had good recycling performance.