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Construction of layer-by-layer g-C3N4/Ag/Bi2WO6 Z-scheme system with enhanced photocatalytic activity

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Abstract

A highly active Z-scheme layer-by-layer g-C3N4/Ag/Bi2WO6 system was designed and prepared by a facile in situ growth strategy, which led to superior visible-light photocatalytic efficiency with excellent stability and reusability. The photocatalytic degradation rate of Rhodamine B with CN/Ag/BWO was proved to be 3 times higher than g-C3N4 and 4 times higher than Bi2WO6, further demonstrating the necessity of the layer-by-layer structure and the suitable electron mediator Ag in Z-scheme system. A probable mechanism for the enhanced photocatalytic efficiency of CN/Ag/BWO system was proposed. The results demonstrated that ·O2− or direct h+ was the primary reactive radicals involved, which confirmed that the Z-scheme mechanism of charge carrier transfer conducted the higher photocatalytic activity. This work provided scientific basis for rational construction of Z-scheme photocatalytic system.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Science Foundation of China (51372234, 51172218 and 21301187), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grant 201564001), the project funding by China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant 2015M582132 and 2016T90652), and the Qingdao Science and Technology Plan (Grant 15-9-1-60-jch).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266100, People’s Republic of China

    Jing Huang, Xiaotong Li, Ge Su, Rongjie Gao, Bohua Dong & Lixin Cao

  2. College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266100, People’s Republic of China

    Jing Huang & Lixin Cao

  3. Aramco Research Center-Boston, Aramco Services Company, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA

    Wei Wang

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  1. Jing Huang
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  2. Xiaotong Li
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  3. Ge Su
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  5. Wei Wang
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  6. Bohua Dong
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Correspondence to Bohua Dong or Lixin Cao.

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Huang, J., Li, X., Su, G. et al. Construction of layer-by-layer g-C3N4/Ag/Bi2WO6 Z-scheme system with enhanced photocatalytic activity. J Mater Sci 53, 16010–16021 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-018-2672-y

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