Rodlike AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 Heterojunctions with Enhanced Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic Activity.

Novel AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 heterojunctions were prepared by reacting Ag2Mo2O7 microrods with an aqueous KI solution at room temperature. The composite materials, compared with neat AgI and Ag2Mo2O7, showed much higher activities in the photocatalytic degradation of aqueous rhodamine B, methyl orange, tetracycline hydrochloride, and levofloxacin solutions under visible-light irradiation. The structures, morphologies, and other physicochemical properties of AgI, Ag2Mo2O7, and AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 composites were studied via various characterization techniques. The active species involved in the photocatalytic process were examined via radical-capturing experiments and electron spin resonance. Superoxide anion radicals (•O2 -) and photogenerated holes (h+) were found to be the main active species. Photocatalytic mechanisms were proposed and reasons for the enhanced photocatalytic activity were explained.

Introduction

Heterogeneous catalysis plays a key role in removing environmental pollutants in waste gases, indoor air, or waste water, whereas photocatalysis by semiconductors is a key branch of environmental catalysis research.[1−3] TiO2, the benchmark photocatalyst, relies heavily on ultraviolet (UV) light that occupies only a very small portion of the sun light. To make full use of visible light that represents a lion share of sunlight, novel visible-light responsive photocatalysts are especially needed.

There are many types of visible-light-responsive photocatalysts. In particular, Ag-containing compounds such as AgX (X = Cl, Br, or I),[4] Ag2O,[5] Ag3VO4,[6] Ag2CO3,[7] Ag3PO4,[8] Ag2CrO4,[9] and Ag2MoO4[10] have attracted much attention.[11] Among these Ag-containing photocatalysts, Ag2MoO4 has aroused great interest due to its electronic structure and photoluminescence (PL) properties.[12] However, the wide band gap (∼3.2 eV) and the low photocatalytic efficiency of Ag2MoO4[13] have hindered its practical application in photocatalysis. Thus, Ag2MoO4 has been coupled with other substances to form heterojunctions such as Ag2MoO4/g-C3N4,[14,15] Ag3PO4/Ag2MoO4,[16,17] Fe3O4–C3N4–Ag2MoO4,[18] g-C3N4/Ag3PO4/Ag2MoO4,[19] Ag2MoO4/Bi2MoO6,[20] Ag2MoO4/Ag/AgBr/GO,[21] AgBr/Ag2MoO4,[22,23] AgI/Ag2MoO4,[24] Ag2MoO4/AgBr/Ag,[25−27] and Ag/AgCl/Ag2MoO4.[28]

Ag2Mo2O7, a new Ag–Mo–O material with a crystal structure linked as chains, was found to possess a narrower band gap of 2.65 eV and a higher optical absorption ability.[29,30] Ag2Mo2O7 materials with various morphologies (such as nanowires,[30−33] nanoparticles,[34] flower-like,[35] broom-like microstructures,[35] and microrods[36−38]) have been reported. Nevertheless, there are only a few studies on Ag2Mo2O7-based heterojunctions such as AgO/Ag2Mo2O7,[39] g-C3N4/m-Ag2Mo2O7,[40] Ag2Mo2O7@AgBr–Ag,[41] and Ag3PO4/Ag/Ag2Mo2O7.[42]

AgI, with excellent visible-light response and good photocatalytic degradation activity,[43,44] has been used to construct heterojunction photocatalysts such as Ag3VO4/AgI,[45,46] Ag2O/AgI,[47] Ag2WO4/AgI,[48] AgI/g-C3N4,[49] AgI/Bi2MoO6,[50] AgI/BiVO4,[51] AgI/BiOBr,[52] and AgI/BiOCOOH.[53] However, to the best of our knowledge, AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 has not been reported.

Herein, Ag2Mo2O7 microrods were prepared via a facile hydrothermal process,[36] and AgI particles were then deposited onto Ag2Mo2O7 surfaces via treating Ag2Mo2O7 in an aqueous KI solution (Scheme ). Similar treatment processes were used to prepare Ag2Mo2O7@AgBr–Ag by reacting Ag2Mo2O7 with an aqueous NaBr solution[41] and AgI/AgVO3 by reacting AgVO3 with an aqueous KI solution.[45] Interestingly, AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 showed a much higher photocatalytic activity than neat AgI and Ag2Mo2O7. The materials were characterized and tested in visible-light-driven photocatalysis. Possible photocatalytic mechanisms were proposed.

Scheme 1

Schematic Processes for the Synthesis of Rodlike AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 Heterostructure

Results and Discussion

Characterization of the Samples

Figure shows the X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of AgI, Ag2Mo2O7, and S5. The XRD patterns of pure AgI and Ag2Mo2O7 are consistent with the standard XRD data of hexagonal phase AgI (JCPDS No. 09-0374) and monoclinic phase Ag2Mo2O7 (ICSD No. 15-4826), respectively. Compared with pure Ag2Mo2O7, S5 shows distinctive peaks at 2θ = 22.3, 23.7, 25.4, 32.8, 39.2, 42.7, and 46.3°, corresponding to the (100), (002), (101), (102), (110), (103), and (112) planes of hexagonal AgI, respectively. The data mean that S5 contains both Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI. Moreover, with the increasing AgI contents in AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 (S1–S5), the intensity of the AgI peaks enhances gradually, whereas the intensity of the Ag2Mo2O7 peaks becomes weaker (Figure S1). No impurity phases are detected.

Figure 1

XRD patterns of AgI, S5, and Ag2Mo2O7. Standard XRD patterns of AgI (JCPDS No. 09-0374) and Ag2Mo2O7 (ICSD No. 15-4826) are also shown.

The compositions and chemical status of the as-prepared catalysts were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The XPS survey scan spectrum in Figure S2 reveals that S5 contains Ag, I, Mo, O, and adventitious C. The peak position of C 1s at 284.6 eV is used to calibrate the position of other elements. The high-resolution XPS scan spectra of Ag 3d, I 3d, Mo 3d, and O 1s are exhibited in Figure . For S5, the element Ag is present in the form of Ag+, corresponding to the binding energies of 373.8 and 367.8 eV for Ag 3d3/2 and Ag 3d5/2, respectively. Figure b shows two peaks at 619.6 eV (I 3d5/2) and 631.0 eV (I 3d3/2) attributed to I– in S5. Two distinct peaks at 232.1 and 235.3 eV (corresponding to Mo6+) are seen in the Mo 3d high-resolution spectra (Figure c). As shown in Figure d, the high-resolution O 1s peak of S5 is deconvoluted into three peaks at binding energies of 530.2, 531.5, and 533.3 eV, corresponding to Mo–O–Mo bonds,[39] oxygen vacancy,[54] and adsorbed oxygen on the surface[55] of the sample, respectively. Notably, Ag 3d and I 3d peaks in S5 move to a positive position compared with those in AgI, whereas the peak of Mo 3d in S5 shifts slightly to lower binding energies compared with that in Ag2Mo2O7. All the shifts in the XPS spectra can be ascribed to the intense interaction between closely contacted phases of AgI and Ag2Mo2O7.[56]

Figure 2

High-resolution XPS data of Ag 3d (a), I 3d (b), Mo 3d (c), and O 1s (d).

Figure depicts the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of Ag2Mo2O7, AgI, and S5. Pure Ag2Mo2O7 shows a microrod morphology with a mean diameter of 1–2 μm (Figure a,b), whereas pure AgI consists of many irregular particles with sizes of about 10 μm (Figure c,d). For S5 (Figure e,f), the Ag2Mo2O7 microrods are decorated by numerous AgI particles with a grain size of about 100 nm. The reason for the difference seen in the sizes of pure AgI and AgI particles on Ag2Mo2O7 microrods is that pure AgI is formed by direct precipitation in the solution (the growth of AgI crystal is out of control), whereas AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 is produced by reaction between Ag2Mo2O7 microrods and aqueous KI at the liquid–solid interface (this conversion is supposed to be more difficult). As seen from Figure S3, the amount of AgI particles assembled on the surface of Ag2Mo2O7 increases with enhanced content of AgI (Figure S3). The energy-dispersive spectrometry (EDS) result in Figure S4 also indicates the coexistence of Ag, I, Mo, and O elements in S5. The molar percentage of I element is shown to be 21.4%, in line with the theoretical content of 21.1%.

Figure 3

SEM images of (a, b) Ag2Mo2O7, (c, d) AgI, and (e, f) S5.

The N2 adsorption–desorption isotherms of Ag2Mo2O7, AgI, and S5 were measured. In Figure S5, S5 shows the isotherms of type IV with a type H3 hysteresis loop (based on IUPAC classification) at high relative pressures (p/p0) between 0.85 and 1.0, suggesting the presence of aggregation voids between the particles.[57] For comparison, Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI exhibit type II isotherms without a significant hysteresis loop, indicating there are no pores in Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI.[58] The Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface areas of Ag2Mo2O7, AgI, and S1–S5 are 1.43, 0.93, 1.87, 2.07, 4.31, 5.86, and 5.89 m2/g, respectively. Among them, S5 shows the highest BET surface areas.

Figure shows the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) results of Ag2Mo2O7, AgI, and S5. Compared with the pure Ag2Mo2O7 microrod (Figure a), the surface of S5 (Figure c) becomes rougher due to some small bulges observed at the microrod surface, which can be recognized as AgI particles, in line with the SEM images (Figure ). The high-resolution TEM (HRTEM) image of S5 is presented in Figure d. The lattice fringes of 0.398 and 0.373 nm correspond to the (100) and (002) lattice planes of AgI, whereas the lattice fringes of 0.321 and 0.286 nm are attributed to the (022) and (200) lattice planes of Ag2Mo2O7. The results prove the formation of a heterojunction structure in S5.

Figure 4

TEM images (b) of Ag2Mo2O7 (a), AgI (b), S5 (c) and HRTEM of S5 (d).

The distribution of elements in S5 was demonstrated by scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM)–energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) elemental mapping. As shown in Figure , the Ag, Mo, and I elements are all uniformly distributed in S5. In particular, the distribution of I element is wider than that of the Mo element, indicating that the Ag2Mo2O7 microrod is well covered by AgI particles, consistent with the SEM (Figure ) and TEM (Figure ) observations.

Figure 5

STEM and EDX elemental mapping images of S5.

The optimal properties of the samples were investigated by UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (Figure a). Pure Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI present a broad absorbance in both ultraviolet and visible-light ranges. The optical absorption edges of pure Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI are located at 455 and 440 nm, respectively. S5 exhibits light absorption edges between 455 and 440 nm. This result indicates that all of the photocatalysts possess visible-light response. However, the light absorption ability of the samples (above 450 nm) clearly follows the sequence of Ag2Mo2O7 > S5 > AgI. In addition, the optical absorption edges of AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 show a slight red shift with the increasing content of AgI (Figure S6).

Figure 6

(a) UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectra of Ag2Mo2O7, AgI, and S5. (b) A plot of (αhν)1/2 versus the band gap energy (eV) for Ag2Mo2O7. A plot of (αhν)2 versus the band gap energy (eV) for AgI.

The band gap energies (Eg) of pure Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI are calculated according to the following equation[41]where α, A, hν, and Eg are the absorption coefficient, proportionality constant, photon energy, and band gap energy, respectively. The value of index n is determined by the type of optical transition of semiconductors; n equals to 1 for the direct transition and 4 for the indirect transition of photocatalysts. The optical transition of AgI is direct,[24] and the Eg of AgI is estimated from the plot of (αhν)2 versus the photon energy (hν) to be 2.82 eV. Ag2Mo2O7 is an indirect semiconductor,[40] so the value of n is 4 and the Eg is measured to be 2.68 eV (Figure b).

The conduction band (CB) and valence band (VB) positions can be determined through the following empirical equations[41]where EVB is the VB edge potential and X is the absolute electronegativity of the semiconductor. The X values for Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI are 6.08 V[40] and 5.48 V,[45] respectively. E0 is the energy of free electrons on the hydrogen scale, with the value of 4.5 V,[59] and Eg is the band gap energy of the semiconductor. The EVB values of Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI are calculated to be 2.92 and 2.39 V vs normal hydrogen electrode (NHE), and the corresponding ECB values are calculated to be 0.24 and −0.42 V vs NHE, respectively.

Photocatalytic Activities of Samples

The photocatalytic activities of the samples were first measured by degrading aqueous solution of methyl orange (MO) under visible-light irradiation. Figure a shows the variations of MO concentration (C/C0) versus irradiation time, where C0 and C are the initial concentration and concentration at reaction time t, respectively. The degradation of MO is negligible in the absence of a photocatalyst. Both Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI show poor photocatalytic performance, i.e., only 7.6% and 3.3% of MO can be degraded within 90 min, respectively. AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 composites exhibit superior photocatalytic activities, and the degradation efficiencies of MO increase gradually with the growing AgI content. Among these composite photocatalysts, S5 exhibits the highest degradation efficiency of 80% after 90 min irradiation. S5 also displays a higher photocatalytic activity in the degradation of MO than the optimal photocatalyst of Ag/AgCl/Ag2MoO4 reported in our previous study[28] (Figure S7). Figure b shows the time-dependent UV–vis spectra of MO (10 mg/L) on S5. It can be seen that the absorption peak of MO decreases with the prolongation of irradiation time, and characteristic absorption peak at around 464 nm of MO almost disappear after irradiation for 90 min. The total organic carbon (TOC) analysis indicates that there is no decrease in the TOC value after reaction for 90 min (with respect to the TOC value of the fresh MO solution), indicating that MO is degraded, by using S4, into colorless organic products.

Figure 7

(a) Adsorption and visible-light-degradation curves of MO (10 mg/L) without a photocatalyst and in the presence of catalysts. (b) Time-dependent UV–vis spectra of MO solution for S5. Here C/C0 values were determined by the intensity of the absorption peak at 464 nm.

The corresponding pseudo-first-order rate constant (k) can be calculated by the following equation: ln(C0/C) = kt, where C0 and C are initial concentration and the concentration of rhodamine B (RhB) at irradiation time t, respectively. As shown in Figure S8, the reaction in the first 15 min of reaction is much faster than the reaction afterward. In each stage, S5 is still the most active catalyst.

The stability of S5 was investigated by a four-run recycling experiments under the same condition, and the result is displayed in Figure a (containing the dark adsorption for 30 min). After four cycles, S5 still exhibits high activity for the degradation of MO, and the MO degradation efficiency is 77.6%, slightly dropping 2.5%, which may be attributed to the transformation of Ag+ into Ag0 during the photocatalytic process. The formation of Ag0 has been confirmed via XRD and XPS. Compared to the fresh S5 (Figure b), the XRD pattern of the used S5 collected after the cycling runs shows a weak peak located at 2θ = 38.1o, corresponding to the (111) facets of cubic Ag0 (JCPDS No. 040783). The XPS spectrum also shows two peaks of Ag0 located at 368.1 and 374.1 eV in S5 after four cycling runs (Figure b,c). The result is in accordance with the SEM–EDS result showing the higher content of Ag after reaction (Figure S9).

Figure 8

(a) Cycling runs in removing MO over S5 (containing the dark adsorption for 30 min). (b) XRD patterns of S5 before and after four cycling runs. (c) Survey XPS spectra. (d) Ag high-resolution XPS data of fresh and used S5.

As for the photodegradation of RhB, the results presented in Figure depict a trend similar to the trend seen in the degradation of MO, except that AgI is more active than Ag2Mo2O7 in this reaction. As seen in Figure a, the dye molecules’ capacity to adsorb S1–S5 composites in the dark is enhanced in turn due to the increased SBET. From the degradation curves of RhB (Figure b), it can be observed that an obvious blue shift occurs with the decrease in the maximum absorption peak. The phenomenon of the blue shift implies the de-ethylation of RhB during its degradation process.[60] The kinetics of the photocatalytic degradation of RhB are also fit by the pseudo-first-order kinetics linear function model (Figure S10). S5 shows the highest photocatalytic degradation rate (5.06 × 10–2 min–1), greatly higher than that of Ag2Mo2O7 (5.63 × 10–5 min–1) and AgI (7.25 × 10–3 min–1).

Figure 9

(a) Adsorption and visible-light-degradation curves of RhB (10 mg/L) without a photocatalyst and in the presence of catalysts. (b) Time-dependent UV–vis spectra of RhB solution for S5. Here, C/C0 values were determined by the intensity of the maximum absorption peak in the 490–548 nm region (not at a fixed wavelength).

The TOC value of the solution collected at 90 min irradiation (by using S5 as a catalyst) divided by the TOC value of the fresh RhB solution is 59.6%, i.e., the TOC value decreases by 40.4%. The decrease percentage is similar to the decrease in C/C0 value cased by dark adsorption (Figure a), implying that RhB is degraded into colorless organic products using this catalyst upon light irradiation.

In addition, colorless organic compound of tetracycline hydrochloride (TC, 20 mg/L) and levofloxacin (LEV, 20 mg/L) were also used to assess the photocatalytic activity of the samples (Figure ). Both AgI and Ag2Mo2O7 show poor removal efficiency in TC and LEV degradation. The degradation efficiencies of TC and LEV are improved significantly after coupling Ag2Mo2O7 with different amounts of AgI, and S5 presents the highest degradation efficiencies of 64.3% (TC) and 64.5% (LEV), respectively. Therefore, this result can confirm the prominent photocatalytic performance of S5.

Figure 10

Adsorption and visible-light-degradation curves of (a) TC (20 mg/L) and (b) LEV (20 mg/L) without a photocatalyst and in the presence of catalysts. Here, C/C0 values were determined by the intensity of the maximum absorption peaks at 357 and 290 nm, respectively.

Photocatalytic Reaction Mechanism

Photoluminescence (PL) emission was employed to investigate the migration, separation, and recombination of photoinduced charge carriers. A lower PL emission peak intensity indicates a higher separation efficiency of the photoexcited electron–hole pairs.[29,61] As seen from the PL spectra of Ag2Mo2O7, AgI, and S5 in Figure a, both Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI exhibit higher PL intensity, which implies the possibility of a faster recombination of charge carriers. On the contrary, S5 displays lower PL signals, suggesting that the recombination of the electrons and holes is effectively restrained and the electron-transfer rate is greatly facilitated.

Figure 11

(a) PL spectra and (b) electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) Nyquist plots of Ag2Mo2O7, AgI, and S5.

To get further insight into the charge-transfer process of the samples, electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) were recorded. As illustrated in Figure b, the arc radius on the EIS Nyquist plot of S5 is considerably smaller than that of Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI, validating that S5 possesses a weaker charge-transfer resistance and a higher photocatalytic activity,[62] consistent with the result of PL.

Radical-trapping experiments were implemented on MO decomposition of S5 via adding scavengers to capture the active species generated during photocatalysis. Herein, p-benzoquinone (BQ, 0.02 mmol),[63] ethylenediaminetetra-acetic acid disodium salt (EDTA-2Na, 1 mmol),[41] and isopropyl alcohol (IPA, 1 mmol)[64] were used as scavengers for superoxide anion radicals (•O2–), photogenerated holes (h+), and hydroxyl radicals (•OH), respectively. As shown in Figure , the MO degradation is significantly inhibited after the addition of BQ, with the efficiency decreased from 80.0% (no scavenger) to 29.4% (in the presence of BQ), indicating that •O2– is the predominant active species in the photocatalytic degradation process. When EDTA-2Na is introduced to the reaction system, the MO degradation efficiency drops from 80.0% (no scavenger) to 50.1% (in the presence of EDTA-2Na), suggesting that h+ plays a secondary role. In regard to •OH, the degradation of MO is slightly suppressed after the addition of IPA. Thus, hydroxyl radicals (•OH) are not actively involved in the photocatalytic process. To summarize, •O2– and h+ are the mainly active species in the photocatalysis.

Figure 12

Photodegradation of MO solution under visible-light irradiation in the presence of S5, without or with p-benzoquinone (BQ), ethylenediaminetetra-acetic acid disodium salt (EDTA-2Na), and isopropyl alcohol (IPA).

The radical-capture experiments were also conducted on LEV decomposition using S5. As shown in Figure S11, the degradation of LEV is greatly restrained after the addition of EDTA-2Na and slightly hindered in the presence of IPA, suggesting the key role of h+ in the degradation process. The experiment using BQ does not generate conclusive results due to the interference of the characteristic absorption peak of LEV. This is also the case with TC (data not shown).

The existence of active species was further confirmed by electron spin resonance (ESR) spin-trap techniques utilizing 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (DMPO, a spin-trapping reagent). Remarkably, there are no signals in the dark, whereas intensive characteristic signals can be detected under visible-light irradiation. As shown in Figure a, four strong characteristic peaks with intensities of 1:2:2:1 appear in the aqueous dispersions of S5 under visible-light irradiation, as attributed to the DMPO–•OH spin adducts,[56] and the peak intensity is significantly stronger than those of Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI. Meanwhile, six characteristic peaks of DMPO–•O2– are also distinctly observed under visible-light illumination (Figure b),[65] and S5 shows the strongest peak intensity among the three samples, in agreement with the enhanced photocatalytic performance of S5. Overall, the ESR results demonstrate that •O2– and •OH are generated during the photocatalytic degradation process using S5. However, it should be mentioned that •OH is not relevant to photocatalytic degradation in this study according to the redical-capture experiments (Figure ) although it is indeed generated (Figure a).

Figure 13

DMPO spin-trapping ESR spectra of Ag2Mo2O7, AgI, and S5 (a) in aqueous dispersion for DMPO–•OH and (b) in methanol dispersion for DMPO–•O2– in the dark and under visible light for 5 min.

Two photocatalytic mechanisms are proposed and illustrated in Figure . Both Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI can respond to visible light, and photoinduced electrons can be excited to the conduction band (CB). Since the CB edge of Ag2Mo2O7 (0.24 V) is more positive than that of AgI (−0.42 V), the excited electrons (e–) will migrate from the CB of AgI to the CB of Ag2Mo2O7, whereas the photogenerated holes (h+) left behind will transfer from the VB of Ag2Mo2O7 to the VB of AgI (Figure a). However, due to the much more positive edge potential of Ag2Mo2O7 (0.24 V) than the potential of O2/•O2– (−0.33 V),[66] the electrons accumulated in the CB of Ag2Mo2O7 are unable to transform O2 to •O2–. Similarly, the transformed holes also do not work in the system, owing to the lower oxidation potential of AgI (2.39 V) than that of H2O/•OH (2.72 V).[52] Thus, a Z-scheme mechanism may be more reasonable. As shown in Figure b, the excited electrons in the CB of Ag2Mo2O7 combine with the holes in the VB of AgI. Therefore, the preserved photoinduced electrons in the CB of AgI with high reduction ability will reduce oxygen to produce •O2–, and the maintained photogenerated holes in the VB of Ag2Mo2O7 with high oxidation ability can directly react with pollutants to produce the degradation products. In general, the efficient Z-scheme heterojunction can optimize the redox ability of photocatalysts and lead to superior photocatalytic performance.[67]

Figure 14

Schematic illustration of two different mechanisms over AgI/Ag2Mo2O7: (a) conventional heterojunction and (b) Z-scheme heterojunction systems.

Conclusions

Rodlike AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 composites with different molar ratios were fabricated via reacting Ag2Mo2O7 microrods with an aqueous KI solution. The characterization results showed that AgI nanoparticles are evenly distributed on the surface of Ag2Mo2O7 microrods, and heterostructures are formed. Compared with pristine Ag2Mo2O7 and AgI, the resultant AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 heterojunctions displayed better photocatalytic performance for the degradation of organic pollutants under visible-light irradiation, and the optimized AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 molar ratio was 4:1. Good recyclability was also obtained for the optimal AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 sample (S5) in the process of photodegradation. Superoxide anion radicals (•O2–) and photogenerated holes (h+) were found to be the main active species in the photocatalysis. A Z-scheme photocatalytic mechanism was proposed.

Experimental Section

Materials

AgNO3, Na2MoO4·2H2O, KI, HNO3, rhodamine B (RhB), and methyl orange (MO) of analytical grade were purchased from Sinopharm Chemical Reagent. Levofloxacin (LEV) and tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) of analytical grade were obtained from Aladdin. Deionized water was generated from Laboratory Water Purification System (Master-Q30, HHitech).

Preparation of Ag2Mo2O7 Microrods

Ag2Mo2O7 microrods were synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method.[36] In a typical procedure, 1 mmol AgNO3 was dissolved in 40 mL deionized water to form solution A and 0.5 mmol Na2MoO4·2H2O was dissolved in 40 mL deionized water to form solution B. Then, solution A was added into solution B dropwise under magnetic stirring (700 rpm) at room temperature. Subsequently, the pH value of the mixture, monitored by a pH meter, was adjusted to 2 using HNO3 solution (0.7 M), and the mixture was magnetically stirred for 30 min in the dark. The resulting mixture was transferred into a Teflon-lined stainless autoclave of 100 mL capacity, heated to 150 °C for 12 h, and then cooled down to room temperature. The precipitate was separated by centrifugation and washed with deionized water. This centrifugation and washing process was repeated several times. Finally, the product was dried at 60 °C for 12 h.

Preparation of AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 Composites

The obtained Ag2Mo2O7 powders (0.26 g) were dispersed in 100 mL deionized water and treated in an ultrasonic bath for 30 min to allow for the dispersion of Ag2Mo2O7 powders in water. Then, a certain amount (0.11, 0.20, 0.33, 0.50, or 0.67 mmol) of KI was dissolved in 40 mL deionized water, and the KI solution was added dropwise under vigorous stirring (700 rpm). The suspension turned yellow and was kept stirring for 1 h at room temperature. Subsequently, the obtained samples were washed with distilled water several times and then dried at 60 °C for 12 h. The final AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 composites with different theoretical AgI/Ag2Mo2O7 molar ratios of 1:4, 1:2, 1:1, 2:1, and 4:1 are denoted as S1, S2, S3, S4, and S5, respectively. For comparison, pristine AgI was prepared by precipitation using 2 mmol AgNO3 and 2 mmol KI.

Characterization

X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiments for determining the crystal phases were performed using an X’Pert PRO MPD X-ray diffractometer (Rigaku, Japan) using Cu Kα radiation at 40 kV and 30 mA. The scanning speed was chosen to be 10° min–1. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements for analyzing the oxidation states of elements were carried out on an ESCALAB 250XI photoelectron spectroscopy instrument (Thermo Fisher). Scanning electron microscope (SEM) experiments for characterizing the morphology of the samples were conducted on an FESEM-4800 field emission scanning electron microscope. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) experiments for observing the detailed structures and morphologies of the samples were carried out by using a JEOL JEM-2100F high-resolution transmission electron microscope. The Brunauere–Emmette–Teller (BET) specific surface areas were measured by using an automatic surface analyzer (Quantachrome). Optical diffuse-reflectance UV–vis spectra were recorded on a U-3900H spectrophotometer (Hitachi, Japan). Photoluminescence (PL) spectra were obtained using an FLS1000 Evolution instrument at an excitation wavelength of 355 nm (Edinburgh, England). Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was used to characterize the sample on an electrochemical analyzer (CHI 1030B, Chenhua Instrument Company). Electron spin resonance (ESR) data were acquired by a Bruker A300 spectrometer. The signals of radicals •OH and •O2– were spin-trapped by 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (DMPO) dissolved in H2O and absolute methanol, respectively.[28]

Photocatalytic Activity

Photocatalytic degradation of rhodamine B (RhB, 10 mg/L), methyl orange (MO, 10 mg/L), levofloxacin (LEV, 20 mg/L), and tetracycline hydrochloride (TC, 20 mg/L) was carried out under visible light generated by an Xe lamp (300 W, HSX-F300, Beijing NBeT Technology Co., Ltd.) coupled with a UV-cutoff filter (λ > 420 nm), as shown in Figure S12.[28] Briefly, 30 mg photocatalysts were dispersed in 50 mL contaminant solution (RhB, MO, LEV, or TC solution) in a 100 mL beaker, and the distance between the solution surface and the Xe lamp was 30 cm (Figure S1).

The suspension was stirred vigorously (700 rpm) in the dark for 30 min to reach the adsorption–desorption equilibrium. After that, visible-light irradiation was conducted. At given irradiation time intervals, 3.5 mL of the suspension (containing the solution and fine catalyst powers dispersed within) was sampled and then centrifuged at a speed of 12 000 rpm for 20 min to separate the catalyst powders and solution. The obtained supernatant (solution) was analyzed by a UV-5200PC spectrometer by checking its characteristic absorbance at maximum absorption wavelength. The TOC values of the liquid phases were determined by a TOC analyzer (Shimadzu TOC-VCPN).

For reusability test, the used catalyst powders obtained after one photocatalytic cycle were collected and washed with distilled water, dried at 60 °C, and then reused. Due to the unavoidable loss of catalyst powders during the sampling and recovery processes, parallel photocatalytic runs were conducted to replenish the spent catalysts.