0D/3D CNQDs/CuFe2O4/Cu0 heterostructures as broad spectrum photocatalyst for efficient 5-fluorouracil degradation: Structural evolution and relay oxidation process

Undesirable solar energy absorption, poor charge transfer efficiency, and sluggish metallic ions redox cycle are three pressing problems, restricting the application of photocatalysis and peroxymonosulfate (PMS) techniques. Herein, an interface engineering of g-C3N4 quantum dots anchoring on the CuFe2O4/Cu0 hollow microspheres ([email protected]) was developed to construct a novel 0D/3D broad-spectrum-response photocatalyst. In the relaying PMS-photocatalysis process, 30 μM 5-fluorouracil (5-FLU, 50 mL) was degraded by 99.4 % in 60 min with 0.2 g L−1 [email protected]1F1O and 0.3 mM PMS. The reusability test showed that [email protected]1F1O maintained superior performance with a 5-FLU removal of 92.6 % after the fifth run. Meanwhile, this newly-designed material can be applied in a large temperature and pH range, and even actual water bodies with strong environmental adaptability. Theoretic and experimental analysis demonstrated that the CNQDs and Cu0 sites on [email protected] promoted the earlier PMS activation, and then dual Z-scheme heterostructures (CNQDs/CuFe2O4/CuO) was established, boosting the follow-up photocatalytic activity.