MWCNT supported VO quantum dot nanoparticles decorated BiO nanosheets hybrid system: Efficient visible light driven photocatalyst for degradation of ciprofloxacin.

A novel composite of multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) supported VO quantum dots decorated BiO hybrid was prepared by the simple wet-impregnation method, and the photocatalytic performance of the prepared samples was investigated against the photodegradation of ciprofloxacin (CIP). Herein, different samples of pristine, VO/BiO and MWCNT@VO/BiO hybrid photocatalyst were prepared and systematically characterized by various physicochemical techniques. The characterization results demonstrated that the introduction of MWCNT can change the energy band gap of VO/BiO, and the band energies vary with a constituent of MWCNT@VO/BiO catalyst, in which MWCNT@VO/BiO-5 (0.05 g@0.50 g:0.50 g) has the optimal band gap energy of 2.46 eV. The photocatalytic test demonstrates that the MWCNT@VO/BiO-5 hybrid composites exhibited enhanced photocatalytic activity in CIP degradation compared to that pure and other photocatalyst and its degradation efficiency did not decrease significantly even after five cyclic experiments. The enhanced photocatalytic activity was due to the formation of heterojunction among MWCNT, VO and BiO, which distinctly improved the separation efficiency of the photogenerated charge carrier, thus increasing the degradation performance. This work gives a new approach to designing an efficient photocatalyst for contaminants degradation.