Oxygen vacancies on the BiOCl surface promoted photocatalytic complete NO oxidation via superoxide radicals

One of the core issues in the photocatalytic oxidation of nitric oxide is the effective conversion of NO into the final product (nitrate). More than just improving the visible light photocatalytic performance of BiOCl, we aim to inhibit the generation of toxic by-product NO₂ during this process. In this study, we demonstrate that the oxygen vacancies (OVs) modulate its surface photogenerated carrier transfer to inflect the NO conversion pathway by a facile mixed solvent method to induce OVs on the surface of BiOCl. The photocatalytic NO removal efficiency under visible light increased from 5.6% to 36.4%. In addition, the production rate of NO₂ is effectively controlled. The effects of OVs on the generation of reactive oxygen species, electronic transfer, optical properties, and photocatalytic NO oxidation are investigated by combining density functional theory (DFT) theoretical calculations, the in situ FTIR spectra and experimental characterization. The OVs on the surface of BiOCl speed the trapping and transfer of localized electrons to activate the O₂, producing O₂⁻, which avoid NO₂ formation, resulting in complete oxidation of NO (NO + O₂⁻ → NO₃⁻). These findings can serve as the basis for controlling and blocking the generation of highly toxic intermediates through regulating the reactive species during the NO oxidation. It also can help us to understand the role of OV on the BiOCl surface and application of photocatalytic technology for safe air purification.     

Au nanoparticles loaded on hollow BiOCl microstructures boosting CO2 photoreduction

The BiOCl (BOC) synthesized by the water bath heating method was treated with sodium borohydride (NaBH₄) to introduce oxygen vacancies (OVs). At the same time, Au nanoparticles were loaded to prepare a series of Au/BiOCl samples with different ratios. OVs and Au nanoparticles can promote the light absorption of host photocatalyst in the visible region. The calculated work function of BiOCl and Au can verify the existence of Ohmic contact between the interface of them, which is conducive to the separation of charge carriers. Through a series of photoelectric tests, it was verified experimentally that the separation of charge carriers is indeed enhanced. The high-energy hot electrons produced by Au under the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect can increase the counts of electrons to participate in the CO₂ reduction reaction. Especially for 1.0%-Au/BOC, the yields of CO can reach 43.16 µmol g^?1 h^?1, which is 6.6 times more than that of BOC. Therefore, loading precious metal on semiconductors is an effective strategy to promote the photocatalytic performance of CO₂ reduction reactions.     

Improving visible-light-driven photocatalytic NO oxidation over BiOBr nanoplates through tunable oxygen vacancies

In this work, a series of BiOBr nanoplates with oxygen vacancies (OVs) were synthesized by a solvothermal method using a water/ethylene glycol solution. The number of OVs and facets of BiOBr were tuned by changing the water/ethylene glycol ratio. Although the role of OVs in photocatalysis has been investigated, the underlying mechanisms of charge transfer and reactant activation remain unknown. To unravel the effect of OVs on the reactant activation and photocatalytic NO oxidation process, in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy, so-called DRIFTS, and theoretical calculations were performed and their results combined. The photocatalytic efficiency of the as-prepared BiOBr was significantly increased by increasing the amount of OVs. The oxygen vacancies had several effects on the photocatalysts, including the introduction of intermediate energy levels that enhanced light absorption, promoted electron transfer, acted as active sites for catalytic reaction and the activation of oxygen molecules, and facilitated the conversion of the intermediate products to the final product, thus increasing the overall visible light photocatalysis efficiency. The present work provides new insights into the understanding of the role of OVs in photocatalysts and the mechanism of photocatalytic NO oxidation.     

BiOCl/UiO‐66 composite with enhanced performance for photo‐assisted degradation of dye from water

Semiconductor‐based photocatalysis is an environmental friendly and cost‐effective technique for water treatment. Due to their unique properties, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are considered as ideal platform to develop composite photocatalyst. In this study, Bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) was first attempt to be incorporated with highly stable MOFs, UiO‐66(Zr) by hydrothermal reaction. Different characterization methods including X‐ray diffraction, Scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscope, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy had been used to prove the successful synthesis of composite photocatalyst. The resultant BiOCl/UiO‐66 composite showed higher photodegradation performance of Rhodamine B (RhB) under ultraviolet and visible light irradiation than that of pristine materials and their mechanically mixed sample. In addition, the composite exhibited good structural stability and reusability. The photocatalytic mechanism of RhB degradation over the composite under visible light proceeded via a photosensitization process. A better adsorptivity of RhB and effective electron transfer within the hybrid material might be responsible for the enhanced photocatalytic performance.     

Visible‐Light Photocatalysis: Does It Make a Difference in Organic Synthesis?

Visible‐light photocatalysis has evolved over the last decade into a widely used method in organic synthesis. Photocatalytic variants have been reported for many important transformations, such as cross‐coupling reactions, α‐amino functionalizations, cycloadditions, ATRA reactions, or fluorinations. To help chemists select photocatalytic methods for their synthesis, we compare in this Review classical and photocatalytic procedures for selected classes of reactions and highlight their advantages and limitations. In many cases, the photocatalytic reactions proceed under milder reaction conditions, typically at room temperature, and stoichiometric reagents are replaced by simple oxidants or reductants, such as air, oxygen, or amines. Does visible‐light photocatalysis make a difference in organic synthesis? The prospect of shuttling electrons back and forth to substrates and intermediates or to selectively transfer energy through a visible‐light‐absorbing photocatalyst holds the promise to improve current procedures in radical chemistry and to open up new avenues by accessing reactive species hitherto unknown, especially by merging photocatalysis with organo‐ or metal catalysis.     

Ag/BiOX (X=Cl,Br, I)复合光催化剂的制备、表征及其光催化性能

采用光化学沉积法制备了一系列不同Ag含量的新型Ag/BiOX(X=Cl,Br,I)复合光催化剂,应用X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、扫描电镜(SEM)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、光致发光(PL)谱、紫外-可见(UV-Vis)光谱和N2物理吸附等手段对催化剂进行表征,并以420nm<λ<660nm的可见光为光源,评价了该催化剂光催化降解酸性橙II的活性,考察了不同含量的Ag沉积对BiOX样品光催化性能的影响.N2物理吸附测试结果表明,沉积银在一定程度降低了催化剂的比表面积.UV-Vis测试结果表明,Ag能产生表面等离子共振吸收,有效增强BiOCl和BiOBr对可见光的吸收能力.PL测试结果则表明,Ag能显著抑制光生电子(e-)和空穴(h+)的复合.Ag的存在大幅度提高了BiOX对染料的光催化降解活性.当负载Ag的质量分数(w)为1%-2%时,可使BiOCl、BiOBr和BiOI光催化活性分别提高了10、13和2倍.Ag/BiOX复合光催化剂具有更高催化活性的原因是复合光催化剂对可见光有很强的吸收能力,同时产生了银等离子体光催化作用和银抑制了Ag/BiOX(X=Cl,Br,I)的光生电子-空穴的复合.     

Synthesis,properties and mechanism of photodegradation of core–shell structured upconversion luminescent NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+@BiOCl

Microspherical bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) can only utilize ultraviolet (UV) light to promote photocatalytic reactions. To overcome this limitation, a uniform and thin BiOCl nanosheet was synthesized with a particle size of about 200 nm. As results of UV–visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy showed, the band gap of this nanostructure was reduced to 2.78 eV, indicating that the BiOCl nanosheet could absorb and utilize visible light. Furthermore, the upconversion material NaYF₄ doped with rare earth ions Yb³⁺ and Er³⁺ emitted visible light at 410 nm following excitation with near‐infrared (NIR) light (980 nm), which could be utilized by BiOCl to produce a photocatalytic reaction. To produce a high‐efficiency photocatalyst (NaYF₄:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺@BiOCl), BiOCl‐loaded NaYF₄:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺ was successfully synthesized via a simple two‐step hydrothermal method. The as‐synthesized material was confirmed using X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy as well as other characterizations. The removal ratio of methylene blue by NaYF₄:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺@BiOCl was much higher than that of BiOCl alone. Recycling experiments verified the stability of NaYF₄:Yb³⁺,Er³⁺@BiOCl, which demonstrated excellent adsorption, strong visible‐light absorption and high electron–hole separation efficiency. Such properties are expected to be useful in practical applications, and a further understanding of the NIR‐light‐responsive photocatalytic mechanism of this new catalytic material would be conducive to improving its structural design and function.     

二维复合光催化剂的合成及其性能研究

摘要：通过超声辅助溶剂热法制备一种新型的二维类复合光催化剂BiOCl/MOF-5。运用XRD、SEM、BET、TEM、PL 等手段对催化剂的特殊结构和性能进行表征。在该光催化剂体系中,选取MOF-5为载体,通过与光催化剂BiOCl复合来合成一种新型的二维复合光催化剂。 结果表明,制备的催化剂均呈现出较为明显的二维形貌,且相对与单一BiOCl (3.15 mg2?g-1 )来说,该复合催化剂 (110.16 mg2?g-1 ) 的比表面积得到了明显的提高。由于催化剂的光催化性能与其比表面积和孔隙体积密切相关。复合催化剂相对较大的比表面积和适当的能带隙,有利于为反应物提供更多的活性位点和有效的传输路径,而且得益于MOF-5独特的形貌和结构,光催化剂聚集和比表面积小的问题也得到了解决。因此,该复合材料在降解有机物方面呈现出优异的光催化活性,且与纯BiOCl相比,催化剂的光催化活性得到了明显的提高。     

Fabrication of FeOOH/BiOCl Nanocomposites with Enhanced Visible Light Photocatalytic Activity

BiOCl as a two‐dimensional layer ternary oxide semiconductor, has been widely used in energy and environmental area due to its non‐toxicity, price and the good photocatalytic performance. However, BiOCl has a wide bandgap and can only absorb ultraviolet light, which limits its solar energy conversion efficiency for practical application. Herein, we report a facile synthesis of FeOOH/BiOCl nanocomposites by hydrothermal method. The results of XPS and FT‐IR indicated that FeOOH has been loaded on the nanocomposites. The chemical and optical properties of the nanocomposite are well‐characterized. The nanocomposite showed much more excellent photocatalytic performance compared with the individual FeOOH and BiOCl single component. Reactive specie trapping experiment indicated that · O^2– and h⁺ were the two main active species during the photocatalytic process of FeOOH/BiOCl nanocomposites.     

Black BiOCl with disorder surface structure prepared by Fe reduction and the enhanced photocatalytic activity

Black bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) with disordered surface structure has been prepared by a facile Fe reduction method and successfully used as a visible-light photocatalyst. XRD and FESEM results showed that black BiOCl has pure BiOCl phase with plate-like structure. The as-prepared black sample exhibited a broad absorption covered the whole visible light region. The high-resolution TEM images revealed the disordered surface structure, which could be the reason for the black color of BiOCl. The disordered surface was not only responsible for the visible-light absorption but also played a vital role in improving the separation of photo-induced electrons and holes. Methyl orange (MO) photocatalytic degradation experiments showed that the black sample exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than the pristine BiOCl under visible light irradiation. A possible formation mechanism of black BiOCl under Fe reduction was also proposed in our research work.     

In situ construction of oxygen-vacancy-rich Bi~0@Bi_2WO_(6-x) microspheres with enhanced visible light photocatalytic for NO removal

Surface oxygen vacancy defects and metal deposition on semiconductor photocatalysts play a critical role in photocatalytic reactions.In this work,oxygen-deficient Bi_2WO_6 microspheres have been prepared by a facile ethylene glycol-assisted solvothermal method.Bi~0 nanoparticles were reduced by in situ thermaltreatment on Bi_2WO_6 microspheres to obtain Bi~0@Bi_2WO_(6-x) as well as maintaining the oxygen vacancies(OVs) under N_2 atmosphere.Afterwards,photocatalytic NO oxidation removal activities of these photocatalysts were investigated under visible light irradiation and Bi~0@Bi_2WO_(6-x) shows the best NO removal activity than other samples.The photogenerated cha rge separation and trans fe r are promoted by Bi~0 nanoparticles deposited on the surface of semiconductor catalysts.OVs defects promote the activation of reactants(H_2 O and O_2),thereby enhancing the formation of the active substance.Moreover,both OVs defects and Bi~0 metal have the characteristics of extending light absorption and enhancing the efficient utilization of solar energy.Besides,the photocatalytic NO oxidation mechanism of Bi~0@Bi_2WO_(6-x)was investigated by in situ FTIR spectroscopy for reaction intermediates and final products.This work furnishes insight into the synthesis strategy and the underlying photocatalytic mecha nism of the surfacemodified Bi~0@Bi_2WO_(6-x) composite for pollutants removal.     

共价有机框架材料在光催化领域中的应用

共价有机框架(COFs)材料是有机构筑基元通过共价键连接而形成的晶态有机多孔材料. COFs具有孔道结构规整、 及比表面积高等特点, 被广泛地应用于气体储存与分离、 催化、 传感、 储能及光电转化等领域. 将具有可调吸光能力的有机构筑基元引入到COFs中, 可使其展现出强大的光催化潜力. 近年来, COFs在光催化领域中发展迅猛. 本文总结了COFs在光催化产氢、 光催化二氧化碳还原、 光催化有机反应以及光催化污染物降解等方面的研究进展, 并展望了其在光催化领域的应用前景.     

BiOCl/In2S3复合可见光催化剂制备及性能研究

氯氧化铋（BiOCl）较大的禁带宽度使得其只能对紫外光产生响应,严重制约了其进一步光催化应用。为实现BiOCl对可见光的利用,以In2S3为可见光光敏剂,并基于高效实用的机械研磨手段构建BiOCl/In2S3复合可见光催化剂。通过扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、X射线衍射(EDS)、X射线衍射(XRD)、红外光谱(FT-IR)和紫外-可见漫反射光谱(UV-Vis DRS)等方法对催化剂的形貌和结构进行表征。选择盐酸四环素（TC）可见光催化降解为评价模型,系统研究了BiOCl/In2S3复合比例对光催化活性的影响。结果表明两者复合比例为1:1时具有最佳的光催化活性,在可见光照射下对TC的降解效率高达91.4%,且经3次循环降解效率仍保持在87.3%。机理研究表明,In2S3被可见光激发产生电子注入BiOCl的导带(CB),能有效提升载流子的分离效率,而h+和?O2-是光降解过程中的主要活性物质。该项研究工作充分表明了In2S3对BiOCl的高效光敏活性,展示了物理复合法在新型高效可见光催化体系构建中的重要意义。     

Highly Efficient Photocatalysts and Continuous‐Flow Photocatalytic Reactors for Degradation of Organic Pollutants in Wastewater

One of the most important applications for photocatalysis is engineered water treatment that photodegrades organic pollutants in wastewater at low cost. To overcome the low efficiency of batch degradation methods, continuous‐flow photocatalytic reactors have been proposed and have become the most promising method for mass water treatment. However, most commercial semiconductor photocatalysts are granular nanoparticles with low activity and a narrow active light wavelength band; this creates difficulties for direct use in continuous‐flow photocatalytic reactors. Therefore, a high‐performance photodegradation photocatalyst with proper morphology or structure is key for continuous photocatalytic degradation. Moreover, a well‐designed photocatalytic device is another important component for continuous‐flow photocatalysis and determines the efficiency of photocatalysis in practical water treatment. This review describes the basic design principles and synthesis of photocatalysts with excellent performance and special morphologies suitable for a filtering photocatalysis process. Certain promising continuous photodegradation reactors are also categorized and summarized. Additionally, selected scientific and technical problems that must be urgently solved are suggested.     

具有主导晶面的BiOIO3/BiOCl异质结制备与光催化性能

分别以乙二醇/去离子水为溶剂,通过溶剂热/水热法分别制备了具有不同主导晶面的BiOIO₃/{110}BiOCl和BiOIO₃/{001}BiOCl异质结。采用X射线衍射、扫描电子显微镜、能量色散谱和紫外可见漫反射光谱对制备的BiOIO₃/BiOCl光催化剂进行了表征。在可见光照射下,通过对罗丹明 B和苯酚水溶液的光催化降解,考察了 BiOIO₃/BiOCl异质结的光催化活性。结果显示25% BiOIO₃/{110}BiOCl异质结具有最高的光催化效率。BiOIO₃/{110}BiOCl较好的光催化性能是由于其在可见光区较强的光吸收,以及异质结结构和BiOCl所具有的(110)主导晶面有利于光生载流子的分离。超氧自由基(·O₂^-)和空穴(h⁺)是光催化过程中的主要活性物质。此外,根据实验结果探讨了光催化性能增强的机理。     

A Photowelding Strategy for Conductivity Restoration in Flexible Circuits

Light‐driven micropumps, which are based on electro‐osmosis with the electric field generated by photocatalytic reactions, are among most attractive research topics in chemical micromotors. Until now, research in this field has mainly been focused on the directional motion or collective behavior of microparticles, which lack practical applications. In this study, we have developed a photowelding strategy for repeated photoinduced conductivity recovery of cracked flexible circuits. We immersed the circuit in a suspension of conductive healing particles and applied photoillumination to the crack; photocatalysis of a predeposited pentacene (PEN) layer triggered electro‐osmotic effects to gather conductive particles at the crack, thus leading to conductivity recovery of the circuit. This photowelding strategy is a novel application of light‐driven micropumps and photocatalysis for conductivity restoration.     

具有主导晶面的BiOIO3/BiOCl异质结制备与光催化性能

分别以乙二醇/去离子水为溶剂,通过溶剂热/水热法分别制备了具有不同主导晶面的BiOIO₃/{110}BiOCl和BiOIO₃/{001}BiOCl异质结。采用X射线衍射、扫描电子显微镜、能量色散谱和紫外可见漫反射光谱对制备的BiOIO₃/BiOCl光催化剂进行了表征。在可见光照射下,通过对罗丹明B和苯酚水溶液的光催化降解,考察了BiOIO₃/BiOCl异质结的光催化活性。结果显示25%BiOIO₃/{110}BiOCl异质结具有最高的光催化效率。BiOIO₃/{110}BiOCl较好的光催化性能是由于其在可见光区较强的光吸收,以及异质结结构和BiOCl所具有的(110)主导晶面有利于光生载流子的分离。超氧自由基(·O₂^-)和空穴(h⁺)是光催化过程中的主要活性物质。此外,根据实验结果探讨了光催化性能增强的机理。     

超声波辐射快速合成高光催化性能的BiOCl(Br)纳米片

在室温条件下,利用超声波辐射方法快速合成了四方状BiOCl(BiOBr)纳米片光催化剂。应用N2-物理吸附、X射线粉末衍射、扫描电镜、透射电镜、紫外可见光谱等手段对催化剂进行了表征,并以波长为λ=365 nm的紫外光和420 nm<λ<660 nm的可见光为光源,评价了该催化剂光催化降解酸性橙Ⅱ的活性。表征结果表明,超声波辐射可加速BiOCl和BiOBr晶化过程,显著提高BiOCl和BiOBr的结晶度,并使其晶粒发生细化,提高催化剂的比表面积。活性测试表明,声化学合成样品的光催化活性优于普通搅拌制备的样品。其中BiOCl的紫外光催化活性高于商业TiO2(P25)光催化剂。     

Electronic Structure and Optical-absorption Properties of C-, N-, and S-doped BiOCl: the First-principles Calculations

Impurity formation energy, electronic structure, and photocatalytic properties of C-, N-, or S-doped BiOCl are investigated by density-functional theory plus U calculations(DFT + U). Results show that the doping effect of S is better than that of C or N on the tunable photocatalytic activities of BiOCl. At low concentration, S-doped BiOCl systems are the most stable under Bi-rich growth conditions because of their lower impurity-formation energy. Compared with the electronic structures of S-doped BiOCl, C-or N-doped BiOCl have relatively deeper impurity energy levels appearing in their band gap(except Bi_(36)O_(35)NCl_(36)), which may act as photogenerated carrier-recombination centers and reduce photocatalytic activity. At high concentration, S is substituted on the O lattice site system, whereas some S 3p states mix with the valence band; this mixture leads to an obvious band-gap decrease and continuum-state formation above the valence-band edge of BiOCl. Such activity is advantageous to photochemical catalysis response. Compared with pure Bi OCl and a low-concentration S-doped system, a high-concentration S-doped system shows an obvious redshift on the absorption edge and has better photocatalytic O_2 evolution performance.     

氯氧化铋催化剂的电子结构调控及其光催化性能研究

以不同Bi/Cl摩尔比例为原料设计合成了一系列BiOCl半导体催化材料。扫描电子显微镜、XRD衍射峰拟合等分析结果显示,Bi/Cl比例的改变对BiOCl的形貌、表面结构、微观电子结构均具有一定的调控作用。以Bi/Cl = 1 : 1为原料合成的BiOCl光催化剂具有最窄的带隙值（Eg=3.18 eV）,使得其具有较强的的光响应能力。光催化去除罗丹明B（RhB）结果表明,随着Bi/Cl摩尔比例的减小,BiOCl的催化性能呈现先增强后减弱的趋势。Bi/Cl = 1 : 1样品具有最优的催化活性,源于其较优异的光吸收性能以及特殊的表面特性。光催化机理研究表明,光催化去除RhB的过程中,起作用的活性物质主要为光生电子、空穴以及半导体表面产生的超氧自由基。