Strong pyro-catalysis of shape-controllable bismuth oxychloride nanomaterial for wastewater remediation

Abstract In this work, the shape-controllable bismuth oxychloride nanomaterials were hydrothermally synthesized for pyro-catalysis treatment of dye wastewater. Under the 25–65 °C cold-hot excitation, the bismuth oxychloride nanoplates, nanoflowers and nanospheres with different specific surface areas of 5.9813, 6.2281 and 12.9614 m2/g, can respectively decompose 12.20%, 58.80% and 85.31% dye solution. The radicals’ trapping experiment confirms that superoxide radicals, hydroxyl radicals and holes are the major active species in this pyro-catalysis process. The bismuth oxychloride nanosphere material with the excellent pyro-catalysis performance is potential for dye decomposition and wastewater remediation through utilizing thermal energy from temperature fluctuation.