The property and mechanism of peroxymonosulfate activation boosted carbon cage encapsulated Mo2C/Bi2O2CO3 Z-scheme heterojunction for enhanced catalytic degradation and antibacterial activity

The regulation of heterogeneous material properties for the synergistic degradation of pollutants remains a challenge. Herein, cobalt-nitrogen co-doped carbon cage (NCC) encapsulated Mo2C nanoparticles boosting Bi2O2CO3 photocatalyst (Mo2C@NCC/BOC) we designed to achieve photoexcitation synergistic PMS activation. The degradation results revealed Mo2C@NCC/BOC could achieved 96.4 % tetracycline (TC) removal after only 5 min. The degradation rate was 3.1 times and 5.9 times higher than those of pure Bi2O2CO3 and pure Mo2C@NCC, respectively. The improved TC degradation performance could be attributed to the Z-scheme heterostructure, resulting in a higher conversion rate of photo-generated electrons into radicals. In addition, Co2+/Co3+ and Mo5+/Mo6+ dual ions redox cycle system effectively triggers the activation of HSO5− under visible light. The TC degradation pathways and intermediate toxicity, including the photocatalytic mechanism were evaluated in detail. This study provides novel perspectives on the rational design of atom co-sharing heterojunction photocatalysts in activating PMS for water remediation.