FeOOH coupled Bi2WO6 for efficient photocatalysis-Fenton synergistic degradation of organic pollutants

In this study, FeOOH/Bi2WO6 was prepared with hydrothermal method followed by impregnation. The photo-Fenton reaction was studied by simulating the degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH) under sunlight. TCH removal by 3%FeOOH/Bi2WO6 (88.39%) was 1.7 times higher than that of Bi2WO6 (52.90%). The increase may be the result of synergy effects, in which photo-generated carriers shifted from Bi2WO6 to FeOOH and provided active centres (Fe2+). Moreover, the removal rate remained above 85% after five cycles, confirming good stability of FeOOH/Bi2WO6 photocatalyst. Through characterization and capture experiment, a reasonable degradation mechanism of pollutants was proposed, which also revealed the principle of photo-Fenton activity.