Fabrication of magnetically recyclable yolk-shell Fe3O4@TiO2 nanosheet/Ag/g-C3N4 microspheres for enhanced photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants
Yan Lv, Lin Yue, Imran Mahmood Khan, You Zhou, Wenbo Cao, Sobia Niazi, Zhouping Wang
Abstract
Herein, we report the fabrication of Fe3O4@TiO2 nanosheet/Ag/g-C3N4 (Fe3O4@ns-TiO2/Ag/g-C3N4) composite photocatalysts with well-designed hierarchical yolk-shell structure. To endow the composites with fascinating features, multiple functional components are perfectly integrated into the definite structure. The photodegradation experiments of organic pollutants revealed a significant enhancement in photocatalytic activity of developed composites as compared to P25, which is mainly due to the synergetic interaction of the tailored three-dimensional (3D) yolk-shell porous nanostructure, extended sunlight response range, and retarded the recombination probability of photogenerated electrons-holes. More importantly, the hybrid samples exhibited superior magnetic properties due to the magnetic component. The excellent magnetic recyclability and reusability of the photocatalysts are verified by the magnetic hysteresis loop and cyclic photocatalytic degradation experiments, which is significant for the green and sustainable applications of photocatalysts. Considering its remarkable photocatalytic performance and expectant magnetic recyclability, the composite photocatalysts are expected to be a promising candidate to dispose of future environmental issues.