Ag@AgHPW as a plasmonic catalyst for visible-light photocatalytic degradation of environmentally harmful organic pollutants

•A new visible-light driven photocatalyst Ag@AgxH3−xPW12O40 was designed.•The photocatalyst shows a high activity for the degradation of methyl blue.•The high activity can be ascribed to the synergy of photoexcited AgHPW and Ag.

Ag@AgxH3−xPW12O40 (Ag@AgHPW) nanoparticles (NPs), a new visible-light driven plasmonic photocatalyst, are prepared by a green photoreduction strategy without the addition of any surfactant. They show strong absorption in the visible region because of the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of Ag NPs. This plasmonic photocatalyst shows a high activity and stability for the degradation of methyl blue (MB) under visible light irradiation, which could be attributed to the highly synergy of photoexcited AgxH3−xPW12O40 (AgHPW) and plasmon-excited Ag NPs and the confinement effects at interfaces between polyoxometalates (POMs) and silver. POM anions have redox ability and high photocatalytic activity, whereas Ag NPs could effectively accelerate the separation of electrons and holes, both of which contribute to their high activity.

Graphical abstractAg@AgxH3−xPW12O40 (Ag@AgHPW) nanoparticles (NPs), a new visible-light driven plasmonic photocatalyst, are prepared by a green photoreduction strategy without the addition of any surfactant, which show a high activity and stability for the degradation of methyl blue (MB) under visible light irradiation.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide