Antibacterial Activity and the Mechanism of the Z-Scheme BiMoO/BiOI Heterojunction under Visible Light.

Z-scheme BiMoO/BiOI heterojunction was constructed by an in situ solvothermal method, which was composed of BiMoO nanosheets growing on the surface of BiOI microrods. The antibacterial activities under illumination towards () were investigated. The BiMoO/BiOI composites exhibited more outstanding antibacterial performance than pure BiMoO and BiOI, and the (10 cfu/mL) was completely inactivated by BM/BI-3 under 90 min irradiation. Additionally, the experiment of adding scavengers revealed that h, •O and •OH played an important role in the inactivation process. The cell membrane was damaged by the oxidation of h, •O and •OH, and the intracellular components (K, DNA) subsequently released, which ultimately triggered the apoptosis of the cell. The enhanced antibacterial performance of BiMoO/BiOI heterojunction is due to the formation of Z-scheme heterojunction with the effective charge transfer via the well-contacted interface of BiMoO and BiOI. This study provides useful guidance on how to construct BiOI-based heterojunction for water disinfection with abundant solar energy.