Tailored fabrication of interface-rich hierarchical Bi24O31Br10 with enhanced photocatalytic performance

Abstract Constructing Bi-rich photocatalysts has been regarded as a promising strategy for promoting the photocatalytic performance of bismuth oxyhalides, however, tailored fabrication of Bi-rich bismuth oxyhalides with hierarchical structure still remains unexplored. Hereof, Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 hierarchical hexagonal nanoplates (HPs) are fabricated via facile co-precipitation with subsequent hydrothermal (solvothermal) treatment. The ethylene glycol coordination induced dissolving-recrystallization of one-dimensional Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 nanobelts (NBs) gives rise to the construction of such unique hierarchical structure. Attributed to the compact intersecting and stacking of nanosheets in this hierarchical structure, Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 HPs are rich in interfaces relative to Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 hierarchical flowers (HFs) constructed by sparsely assembled nanosheets. The abundant interfaces endow hierarchical structure with enhanced charge storage ability for suppressing rapid electron-hole recombination, leading to facilitated separation of photogenerated charge carriers. Thanks to this advantage, Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 HPs display standout catalytic properties in comparison with Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 HFs with fewer interfaces and Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 NBs without hierarchical structure, which only need 20 min and 30 min to reduce 94% of Cr(VI) and degradation of 90% OTC under visible light illumination, respectively. This work not only presents the first report about the fabrication of Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 hierarchical hexagonal nanoplates, but also discloses the pivotal role of interfaces in boosting the photocatalytic performance of hierarchical photocatalysts.