Synthesis of Ag3PO4-AgBr with a novel heterostructure, and its photocatalytic properties

Abstract

Ag3PO4-AgBr nanocomposites with a novel heterostructure were synthesized by a simple one-step reaction at room temperature with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide as surfactant and bromine source. The nanocomposites comprise uniform, monodisperse nanospheres of average diameter 90 nm. AgBr nanoparticles are present both on the surface and inside the nanospheres. The morphology of the composites can be controlled by adjusting the reaction conditions. The photocatalytic activity of the nanospheres was evaluated by monitoring degradation of methyl orange and rhodamine B under visible light irradiation. The results indicate that this novel heterostructure has much greater activity and structural stability than pure Ag3PO4. This may be primarily ascribed to effective separation of photoexcited electron-hole pairs at the contact interfaces.