Efficient degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride by direct Z-scheme HKUST-1@m-BiVO4 catalysts with self-produced H2O2 under both dark and light

Tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH) is a widely used antibacterial agent, which could cause a long-term danger to ecosystem function and human health. It is significant to remove TCH from water. In this work, a series of [email protected]4 catalysts were prepared via the facile ball-milling method and the optimum catalyst exhibited high degradation efficiency (65.14% in dark, 91.72% in visible light) toward TCH. The recycle experiment proved that the prepared catalyst had good stability. The degradation mechanism was investigated. The [email protected]4 catalysts can activate O2 to generate H2O2,·OH, and ·O2- under both dark and light conditions, which can efficiently participate in TCH decomposition. The good synergistic effect between Cu2+/Cu+ Fenton-like reaction and Z-scheme heterojunction can further promote the generation of active species in visible light, which led that [email protected]4 catalysts showed better degradation of TCH in visible light. The TCH degradation pathways were analyzed and the results indicated that the intermediates had lower toxicity than TCH. This work provided a facile method for the preparation of the catalysts with self-produced and activation of H2O2, which could degrade organic pollutants in both dark and visible light in practical wastewater treatment.