Novel 0D/2D Bi2WO6/MoSSe Z-scheme heterojunction for enhanced photocatalytic degradation and photoelectrochemical activity

The catalytic activity of a single catalyst could be optimized by constructing a Z-scheme heterojunction structure with another adaptive material. 0D Bi2WO6 nanoparticles exhibit good oxidation ability, while 2D MoSSe nanoplates with low internal resistance show excellent reduction ability. Herein, novel 0D/2D Bi2WO6/MoSSe Zscheme heterojunction catalysts (BMSS) with different Mo: Bi molar ratios were developed by combining the advantages of pure Bi2WO6 and MoSSe. The matched energy bands may provide the possibility to construct heterojunction, and the internal electric fields could facilitate the separation and transmission of internal carriers. Energy band structure analyses and electron spin resonance (ESR) results have further confirmed the existence of the above Z-scheme heterojunction structure and internal electric field. More importantly, as-prepared BMSS catalysts were proved to have excellent oxidation and reduction ability from photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical results. With an optimized MoSSe loading ratio of 3.66%, the BMSS3 catalyst showed 4.13 times of photocurrent density than that of pure Bi2WO6 and displayed an excellent degradation rate (0.0377 min-1). It can be concluded that BMSS catalysts will have promising applications in photoelectrochemistry and photocatalysis.