Fabrication of n-p β-BiO@BiOI core/shell photocatalytic heterostructure for the removal of bacteria and bisphenol A under LED light.

A novel n-p β-BiO@BiOI core/shell heterostructure was successfully constructed by a facile ultrasonication method. SEM, TEM, XRD and XPS confirmed the core/shell structure. UV-vis indicated the composite had good absorption of visible light. Photocurrent and electrochemical impedance analysis (EIS) revealed effective electron (e) and hole (h) separation efficiency in the core/shell hybrid structure, which induced a significantly improved photocatalytic activity. The β-BiO@BiOI photocatalyst effectively treated with Escherichia coli (E. coli), Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and bisphenol A (BPA) under LED light, and presented better photocatalytic antibacterial performance than β-BiO and BiOI. Trapping experiment revealed that h played an important role in photocatalytic reaction. The present work provided a novel LED light-activated photocatalyst that was efficient for antibacterial application.