One-step synthesis via solution combustion of Fe(III)-doped BiOCl nanoparticles with high photocatalytic activity

The Fe(III)-doped BiOCl catalyst was successfully prepared via a one-step solution combustion synthesis (SCS), and they were characterized by XRD, FESEM, HRTEM, XPS, PL and DRS analysis. With the doping of Fe(III), the SCS catalysts become finer and more uniform, and show narrowed bandgap, which makes the Fe(III)-BiOCl can be excited to form photogenerated electrons and holes under visible light irritation and improve the photocatalytic performance. Compared with the SCS BiOCl, the FB1-2 sample exhibits doubled surface area (9.62 m2/g), narrowed bandgap (1.35 eV) and quadrupling degrading efficiency for Rhodamine B (RhB) (93% at 60 min). In addition, through the capturing of free radicals, the photocatalytic degradation mechanism of RhB was proposed, in which the active substances ∙O2− and h+ played a leading role in the degradation process. Owing to the novel one-step combustion process and resulting in excellent photocatalytic performance, the Fe(III) doping BiOCl is demonstrated as a prospective catalyst for degrading dye pollutants.