Construction of carbon dots modified Cl-doped Bi2WO6 hollow microspheres for boosting photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline under visible light irradiation

The composition of composite photocatalysts with both broad spectral response and efficacious separation of photoinduced carriers were essential. The CDs were installed on the surface of the three-dimensional hollow microsphere nanophotocatalyst Bi2WO6 by the hydrothermal approach. Crystal structure, morphology and composition revealed the synthesis of the composite catalyst. The higher photocatalytic capability of 0.5% CDs/Cl–Bi2WO6 (0.0317 min−1) was observed in the degradation procedure, explained that the doping of Cl and the presence of CDs remarkably strengthened the visible light capture and depressed the rate of electron-hole pair complexation. Notably, scavenger-quenching assays results verified that activities of h+, •OH and •O2‾ were the primary actors in the degradation procedure. Ultimately, the degradation mechanism of a feasible TCH was submitted. This study presented a novel concept for the exploitation of composite nanophotocatalysts for the effective degradation of organic pollutants.