HgI2: A novel photocatalyst with high performance in degradation of rhodamine B dyes under visible-light irradiation

• A new photocatalyst, HgI2, was successfully developed.
• Photocatalytic activity of HgI2 is as high as that of Ag3PO4.
• HgI2 can be reused for at least three cycles without obvious loss of its activity.
• The high activity may be due to low recombination rate of photogenerated carriers.

A new photocatalyst, HgI2, was successfully developed. The HgI2 sample was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), ultraviolet–visible diffuse reflectance spectrum (UV–vis DRS) and photoluminescence (PL) techniques. Its activity is as high as that of the highly efficient photocatalyst Ag3PO4 in degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) dyes under irradiation of visible light. It can be reused for at least three cycles without obvious loss of its activity in the degradation experiments. The main active species of HgI2 for the RhB degradation are superoxide anion radicals. The high photocatalytic activity of HgI2 may be attributed to its low recombination rate of the photogenerated carriers.

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