In-situ construction of amorphous/crystalline contact Bi2S3/Bi4O7 heterostructures for enhanced visible-light photocatalysis

Herein, a novel amorphous/crystalline contact Bi2S3/Bi4O7 heterostructure was constructed by in-situ sulfidation and proved to be an effective photocatalytic Cr(VI) reduction and RhB oxidation. [Display omitted] Constructing a heterojunction photocatalyst is a significant method to enhance photocatalytic activity because it can promote the separation of photogenerated carriers. Herein, amorphous/crystalline contact Bi2S3/Bi4O7 heterostructure was successfully synthesized by in-situ sulfidation of Bi4O7. The amorphous Bi2S3 is diffused on the surface of Bi4O7 rod, enhancing the visible light response and improving the transport of photogenerated carriers. Various characterizations confirm that the rapid separation of photogenerated carriers leads to increased photocatalytic performance. The optimized Bi2S3/Bi4O7 heterostructure photocatalyst (BiS-0.15) exhibits the highest Cr(VI) reduction (0.01350 min−1) and RhB oxidation (0.08011 min−1) activity, which is much higher than that of pure Bi4O7 and Bi2S3/Bi4O7 mixture under visible light irradiation. This work provides new insights into the construction of efficient novel photocatalysts.