Bi2O2CO3 Nanosheet Composites with Bi-Based Metal–Organic Frameworks for Photocatalytic H2O2 Production

Heterojunction integration of inorganic semiconductors with metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) is verified to be a rational strategy to achieve efficient charge separation and to enhance photocatalytic performance. In this work, Bi2O2CO3/Bi-MOF heterostructures were fabricated by an in situ surface trimesic acid (H3BTC) etching method. First, Bi2O2CO3 nanosheets were prepared by the chemical precipitation method. After adding to H3BTC, the rod-shaped Bi-MOF was firmly anchored on Bi2O2CO3 nanosheets because of the reaction of Bi3+ in Bi2O2CO3 with H3BTC. As a result, Bi2O2CO3/Bi-MOF composites displayed enhanced photocatalytic H2O2 production capacities with 280.5 μmol/g/h under simulated sunlight illumination, which is 11.23 and 6.06 times higher than pure Bi2O2CO3 and Bi-MOF, respectively. The excellent H2O2 yield can be attributed to the formation of the in-close contact heterostructure and the internal electric field between Bi2O2CO3 and Bi-MOF, which is conducive to inhibiting the recombination of photoinduced electron–hole pairs at the interfaces, thus showing high photocatalytic H2O2 production performance. This work can inspire exploration of the construction of effective inorganic/MOF hybrid heterostructures for photocatalytic H2O2 production.