Combustion Synthesis of BiOCl with Tunable Percentage of Exposed {001} Facets and Enhanced Photocatalytic Properties

Bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) was synthesized by a simple combustion method. The structures, morphologies, absorbance, optical, and photocatalytic properties of the samples were studied by X‐ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometry, and photoluminescence. The experimental results show that BiOCl microsheet with high percentage of exposed {001} facets was obtained. It is interesting to note that the thickness of BiOCl sheets, in other words, the percentage of exposed {001} facets can be modulated through changing the added amount of ammonium chloride. The sample with the thinnest BiOCl sheets shows the best photodegradation performance of Rhodamine B under ultraviolet light irradiation, which can be attributed to the cooperative effect between the high percentage of exposed {001} facets and high‐specific surface area. Moreover, the corresponding influencing mechanism on the percentage of exposed {001} facets of BiOCl was discussed.