Novel Ag3PO4@ZIF-8 p-n heterojunction for effective photodegradation of organic pollutants

In this study, a novel silver [email protected] imidazolate framework-8 (Ag3PO4@ZIF-8) p-n heterojunction was fabricated at room temperature using the chemical precipitation method. The photocatalytic properties of the developed p-n heterojunction were investigated with respect to organic water pollutants. The effects of the operation parameters on the photocatalytic performance of the fabricated photocatalyst were also studied. The fabricated Ag3PO4@ZIF-8 p-n heterojunction exhibited excellent photocatalytic properties with respect to organic pollutants crystal violet (CV), Congo red (CR), and rhodamine B (Rh B). The total organic carbon (TOC) measurements revealed that the developed Ag3PO4@ZIF-8 p-n heterojunction mineralized 99.0% of Rh B, 90.7% of CV, and 94.7% of CR in 120 min. The heterojunction also exhibited excellent cyclic stability, which is crucial for practical applications. The excellent photocatalytic performance of the developed Ag3PO4@ZIF-8 p-n heterojunction could be ascribed to the suppression of the photogenerated charge recombination, enhancement of the surface area, p-n heterojunction formation, and extended light absorption. Therefore, the developed heterojunction is promising for environmental remediation in general, and for photocatalysis-based treatment of organic pollutant-containing wastewater in particular.