Novel magnetically separable Ag3PO4@CuFe2O4 micro-nanocomposite with highly enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity

Abstract An effective visible-light-driven Ag 3 PO 4 @CuFe 2 O 4 Z-scheme magnetic micro-nanocomposite was successfully fabricated by a simple ion-exchange deposition method. The Ag 3 PO 4 @CuFe 2 O 4 photocatalyst exhibited remarkably enhanced photocatalytic activity (degradation efficiency was ∼99% within 30 min and kinetic constant reached 0.1423 min −1 ) as compared to Ag 3 PO 4 and CuFe 2 O 4 for the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB). Comparing the activity results dependence with the characterization results, which indicated that the dependence of the photocatalytic activity on the efficient separation of photogenerated h + -e − pairs. This study might provide a promising visible light responsive photocatalyst for the photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes in waste water.