Hierarchical C-doped BiPO4/ZnCoAl-LDO hybrid with enhanced photocatalytic activity for organic pollutants degradation

We report here the synthesis of novel C-doped BiPO4/ZnCoAl-LDO hybrid for the first time via a facile biomass route that involved using pine pollen as template. The as-prepared samples exhibited excellent adsorption and photo-degradation performances toward methylene blue under simulated sunlight irradiation. It was found that the formation of heterojunction between BiPO4 and C-doped layered mixed metal oxide (C-doped LDO) ZnCo2O4 could effectively reduce the recombination rate of electrons and holes, and thus improve the photocatalytic activity via enlarging the response range of sunlight. The possible charge transfer mechanism for photo-degradation of methylene blue by C-doped BiPO4/LDO was proposed based on the UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra and active species test. This work provides a new insight into removal of organic pollutant from wastewater by a novel ZnCoAl-LDO based hybrid via adsorption-photocatalysis synergetic effect.