High-performance visible-light-driven plasmonic photocatalysts Ag/AgCl with controlled size and shape using graphene oxide as capping agent and catalyst promoter.

We report herein that Ag/AgCl-based plasmonic photocatalysts with controlled size and shape could be easily formulated by a one-pot approach via a precipitation reaction between AgNO3 or Ag(NH3)2NO3 and NaCl. It is found that near-spherical and cube-like Ag/AgCl nanoarchitectures of 500 nm could be fabricated at lower and higher temperature, respectively. Fascinatingly, when graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets are introduced into the synthesis medium, the size of the formulated near-spherical and cube-like nanostructures, Ag/AgCl/GO, could be 2.5 and 5 times reduced to ca. 200 and 100 nm, respectively, when AgNO3 and Ag(NH3)2NO3 are employed as the silver source. The series of our Ag/AgCl-based nanostructures could be used as visible-light-driven plasmonic photocatalysts for the photodegradation of methyl orange pollutants, wherein the cube-like Ag/AgCl/GO nanoarchitectures of 100 nm display the highest catalytic activity. It is disclosed that the synergistic effect of size, shape, and GO nanosheets plays an important role for their boosted photocatalytic performances. The investigation reveals that GO nanosheets work not only as a capping agent for a controllable fabrication of Ag/AgCl nanostructures, but also as catalyst promoter during the photocatalytic performances, leading to an enhanced catalytic activity. Our unique GO-assisted method likely paves a facile avenue and initiates new opportunities for the exploration of GO-hybridized high-performance catalysts.