Ionic liquid-assisted fabrication of metal–organic framework-derived indium oxide/bismuth oxyiodide p-n junction photocatalysts for robust photocatalysis against phenolic pollutants

Abstract Constructing a p–n heterojunction is a feasible strategy to manipulate the dynamic behaviors of photogenerated carriers through an internal electric field. Herein, a novel highly efficient indium oxide/bismuth oxyiodide (In2O3/BiOI) p–n junction photocatalyst was fabricated using a facile ionic liquid-assisted precipitation method for the first time. The morphologies were modified by adding different amounts of acetic acid solution. Their hierarchical architecture was beneficial for adsorbing contaminants in wastewater, while the in-situ formed p-n heterojunction between BiOI and In2O3 facilitated interfacial charge transfer and improved the quantum efficiency. Their visible light-responsive photocatalytic activities were systematically investigated by photocatalytic o-phenylphenol (OPP) and 4-tert-butylphenol (PTBP) oxidation. The degradation rate of OPP over In2O3/BiOI-2 was up to 5.67 times higher than that for BiOI. The excellent activity of In2O3/BiOI should be attributed to the rapid interfacial charge transfer, depressed carrier recombination, and proper band potentials. Trapping experiments and electron paramagnetic resonance characterizations confirmed the generation of hydroxyl radicals (•OH) and superoxide radicals (•O2–), which have played a key role in decomposing pollutants. The intermediate products generated during the photocatalytic degradation of OPP were detected and identified by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Meanwhile, their possible molecular structures and degradation pathways have also been inferred.