WO<sub>3</sub> Nanorod-Doped Hexagonal ZIF-67@ZIF-8 Metal–Organic Frameworks: A Z-Scheme Heterostructure for Enhanced Photocatalytic Degradation of Tetracycline under Visible Light
Preeti Garg, Nishtha Dhingra, Prerna Attri, Gaurav Yadav, Moondeep Chauhan, Ganga Ram Chaudhary
Abstract
As healthcare systems continue to grow, the overuse of antibiotics poses a rising threat of water contamination. Designing a suitable catalyst remains a bottleneck for their efficient photocatalytic degradation. Herein, we constructed a Z-scheme heterojunction for antibiotic degradation under visible light irradiation. A WO 3 @ZIF-67@ZIF-8 nanocomposite was created by hydrothermally immobilizing WO 3 nanorods produced by a coprecipitation technique onto ZIF-67@ZIF-8 metal–organic frameworks. Uneven distribution of WO 3 across the hexagonal structure of ZIF-67@ZIF-8 was found by field emission scanning electron microscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The composites photocatalytic activity in degrading tetracycline was significantly higher than that of ZIF-67@ZIF-8 or WO 3 alone. A Z-scheme mechanism, confirmed via Mott–Schottky analysis, facilitated the degradation, and the catalyst showed strong stability, retaining performance after four reuse cycles. This study lays forth a feasible strategy for synthesizing a Z-scheme zeolite-based catalyst to effectively eradicate pollutants from water.