Photo-Fenton like degradation of tetrabromobisphenol A with grapheneBiFeO3 composite as a catalyst

GrapheneBiFeO3 nanoscaled composites were prepared with a sol–gel method and evaluated as highly efficient photo-Fenton like catalyst under visible light irradiation. The grapheneBiFeO3 composite had a specific surface area of 35.07 m2 g−1, being considerably larger than that of BiFeO3 nanoparticles (7.50 m2 g−1). The composite exhibited excellent visible light-Fenton like catalysis activity, being influenced by calcination temperature, graphene content and solution pH value. Under optimal conditions with visible light irradiation, the grapheneBiFeO3 composite yielded fast degradation of tetrabromobisphenol A with a apparent rate constant of 1.19 min−1, which was 5.43 and 3.68 folds of that achieved by using BiFeO3 and the mixture of BiFeO3 and graphene, respectively. The significantly enhanced visible light-Fenton like catalytic properties of the grapheneBiFeO3 composite in comparison with that of BiFeO3 was attributed to a large surface area, much increased adsorption capacity and the strong electron transfer ability of graphene in the composite.

Graphical abstractGrapheneBiFeO3 composites were synthesized by growing BiFeO3 nanoparticles on graphene sheets. The composite exhibited good photo-Fenton like catalytic activity.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slideHighlights► GrapheneBiFeO3 composite is prepared by assembling BiFeO3 nanoparticles on graphene sheets. ► The composite exhibits larger specific surface area than BiFeO3. ► The composite exhibits much higher photo-Fenton like catalytic activity than BiFeO3. ► TBBPA is efficiently degraded by photo-Fenton like process catalyzed by the composite.