Surface etching and photodeposition nanostructures core-shell Cu2O@CuO-Ag with S-scheme heterojunction for high efficiency photocatalysis

Cu2O is one of ideal candidate photocatalyst, and it has attracted considerable attention owing to its low-cost and visible light responsive. Here, a core-shell structure of Cu2[email protected] with S-scheme heterojunction was delicately designed and synthesized for efficient photocatalytic degradation of the methyl orange (MO) and reduction of Cr(VI) under visible light. The shell of CuO and Ag nanoparticles were successfully close wrapped cube Cu2O core by the in situ topotactic oxidation of Cu+ in the surface of Cu2O and light deposition strategies, respectively. The Cu2[email protected] hybrid exhibits excellent photodegradation of MO activity and the reaction constant k is approximately 0.16 min−1, that is 8.20 times and 2.18 times higher than that for pure Cu2O and Cu2[email protected], respectively. The Cu2[email protected] hybrid was also used to remove Cr(VI), and it exhibited not only strong adsorption ability, but also displayed remarkably promote photocatalytic performance in the absence of the sacrificial agents. The origin of the efficient activity of Cu2[email protected] hybrid photocatalyst was synergistic reaction to promote charge separation by S-scheme heterojunction designing and Ag acted as electron trap. This work provides a reference to design heterojunction photocatalysts based on Cu2O for photodegradation.