UV-light-promoted synthesis of a double Z-scheme BN/C60/g-C3N4 heterojunction with enhanced photodegradation performance for antibiotics

Abstract

Developing environmental-friendly non-metal photocatalysts for the efficient removal of antibiotics from environment is a significant challenge. The construction of heterojunction is regarded as a powerful strategy to enhance the photodegradation efficiency of photocatalysts for pollutants, being due that this strategy can effectively suppress the recombination of the photo-induced electron and hole. In this research, a novel double Z-scheme BN/C₆₀/g-C₃N₄ heterojunction was successfully synthesized via one-step synthetic approach. Based on a series of experimental characterization, BN/C₆₀/g-C₃N₄ is most likely formed via the interaction between N element of BN and g-C₃N₄ with C₆₀ under UV-light irradiation. The band structures of BN, C₆₀, g-C₃N₄ and the internal electric field among them suggest that BN/C₆₀/g-C₃N₄ may has a direct double z-type band arrangement, which facilitates efficient charge transfer. The photodegradation rate of BN/C₆₀/g-C₃N₄ for tetracycline reached 90.1 %, which is 2.9 times higher than that observed with BN and 2.3 times higher than that of g-C₃N₄. BN/C₆₀/g-C₃N₄ exhibits remarkable photocatalytic performance across a wide pH range and in the influence of different anions. This study offers significant insights about how to design double z-scheme metal-free photocatalyst with high photodegradation efficiency for antibiotic.