Hierarchical ZnO/MXene composites and their photocatalytic performances

Abstract MXene with low band gap and excellent metallic conductivity is a novel ultrathin two-dimensional transition metal carbide, and has been widely used as the photocatalytic carrier of semiconductor material. Herein, ZnO/MXene composites were fabricated by a facile two-step chemical reaction method and their structures and photocatalytic performances were investigated systematically. At lower growth temperatures, ZnO particles were dispersed on the Ti3C2 layers whereas ZnO microrods covered the Ti3C2 layers at higher growth temperatures. Especially, ZnO microrods/MXene composites show good photocatalytic performances. Under UV irradiation, about 97.5% Rhodamine B was degraded by the composite within 18 min and retained more than 90% of the photocatalytic efficiency after 7 cycles. Therefore, ZnO microrods/MXene composites can be regarded as a potential candidate for applications in waste water treatment and environmental protection.