Utter degradation of toluene with inhibiting the generation of benzene by self-supporting Bi2MoO6 nanoflakes featuring OV-enriched interface

Abstract Bi2MoO6 nanoflakes grown on Mo mesh were prepared, in which oxygen vacancies (OVs) were created through an electrochemical reduction process. Notably, the OV-enriched interface offers a tight affinity toward H2O and O2 molecules due to the localized area with plentiful photogenerated electrons. When toluene degraded, the resultant hydroxyl radical (•OH) timely consume the unsaturated benzene (C6H5•) to produce phenol and thus prevent the generation of benzene (C6H6). Moreover, OVs can serve as anchored sites to adsorb oxygen and conjugate electrons to yield superoxide radical (•O2–) on Bi2MoO6. As a result, the toluene molecules and intermediates are completely oxidized, demonstrating a 100% removal percentage and a 92.5 % mineralization degree. Although the OVs are prone to be deactivated during the photocatalysis process, electrochemically re-reducing the Bi2MoO6/Mo mesh can refresh them by virtue of the self-supporting feature.