Facile Fabrication of Bi12O17Br2/Bi24O31Br10 Type II Heterostructures with High Visible Photocatalytic Activity

One-dimensional (1D) Bi 12 O 17 Br 2 /Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 type II heterostructures were synthesized by calcining BiOBr/Bi(OHC 2 O 4 )·2H 2 O heterostructures in air at 400 °C. The photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared products was evaluated by the degradation of phenol and Rhodamin B (RhB) under visible light irradiation. The Bi 12 O 17 Br 2 /Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 hierarchical heterostructures show enhanced visible light catalytic activity with the increase of the loaded/Bi 24 O 31 Br 10 content, which results from the efficient separation of photogenerated charge carriers due to the staggered band potentials of the two materials. Radical scavenger experiments confirm that photogenerated holes (h + ) are the main active species for oxidizing RhB molecules during the photocatalytic processes.