Simultaneously promoting adsorption and charge separation in Z-scheme ZnO/Cu2O heterojunctions for efficient removal of tetracycline

Exploring novel materials with both high adsorption capacity and photocatalytic properties is urgent in environmental remediation. In this work, a Z-scheme ZnO/Cu2O heterostructure with a large surface area of 45.42 m2/g was constructed by using the liquid phase reduction method. Compared to pure ZnO and pure Cu2O, the as-synthesized ZnO/Cu2O nanocomposites exhibited excellent capacity of adsorption and photodegradation for tetracycline (TC), which was degraded 95.3% of TC within 120 min under simultaneous adsorption and photocatalytic processes. Theory and experimental analysis manifested that the excellent adsorption-photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the large BET specific surface area, the efficient charge carrier separation and the high redox capability. The results of this study identified the potential advantages of ZnO/Cu2O composites for removing antibiotics to purify water resources and protect the environment.