Easy synthesis of high (110) facet-exposed BiOCl microspheres with excellent visible light degradation capability towards RhB

Abstract

A novel BiOCl microsphere with high (110) facets exposure is successfully synthesized via a one-step solvothermal process in the presence of ethylene glycol without any other surfactant. The percentage of exposed (110) facets can be easily controlled by reactant concentration. The obtained BiOCl microsphere exhibited excellent photocatalytic efficiency for degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB). Under visible light irradiation, 100 ml 20 mg l ^−1 RhB can be completely decomposed in only 45 min. The excellent performance can be attributed to the efficient separation of photogenerated electrons and holes benefited from the special electronic structure of BiOCl microspheres. The (110) crystal facets are beneficial for holes transfer while the electrons migrate in [001] direction which is perpendicular to the (110) facet, thus extending the lifetime of photoinduced charges. This study may open more possibilities for the rational design and controllable synthesis of visible light photocatalysts with excellent performance.

Keywords

• BiOCl
• facet engineering
• visible light
• photocatalysis
• rhodamine B