Preparation and formation mechanism of BiOCl0.75I0.25 nanospheres by precipitation method in alcohol-water mixed solvents.

BiOCl0.75I0.25 crystals with irregular three-dimensional (3D) flower-like and hierarchical nanosphere-like structures were successfully synthesized in different alcohol-water mixed solvents by precipitation method. The primary formation mechanism of BiOCl0.75I0.25 nanospheres was investigated by taking water, monohydric alcohols (ethanol and isopropanol), and polyhydric alcohols (ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, and glycerol) as solvents in the synthesis process. The obtained BiOCl0.75I0.25 samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy, and nitrogen adsorption. Results showed that the alcohol solvents with different physical and chemical properties used in the synthesis process performed significant functions in directing the morphology and surface pore structure of BiOCl0.75I0.25 crystals. Meanwhile, BiOCl0.75I0.25 synthesized in various solvents exhibited morphology-dependent adsorption and photocatalytic degradation abilities in removing p-hydroxyphenylacetic acid (p-HPA), which was used as a model pollutant, in aqueous solutions under simulated solar light (λ⩾290nm). In addition, the fabrication process of the crystal products was proposed through a series of time-dependent experiments.