Synthesizing pyridinic-N dominate-doped graphene/BiVO4 nanocomposite as a superior photocatalyst for degradation under visible-irradiation

Abstract The disadvantage of bismuth vanadate (BiVO4), a metal oxide semiconductor photocatalytic material, can be overcome by constructing nitrogen-doped graphene-based nanocomposites. Here we state to synthesis pyridinic-N doped graphene/BiVO4 nanocomposite (N-rGO/BiVO4). Because of many defects were existed pyridinic N-rGO, more tiny particle size and interaction from abundant interfacial, between BiVO4 and N-rGO sheets, can produce synergistic effects and enhance photocatalytic performance. N-rGO/BiVO4 composite has a large light absorption range and high photocatalytic activity compared with BiVO4 and rGO/BiVO4. XPS, PXRD, HRTEM, FESEM, UV–vis, PL. etc analytical methods are used to characterize samples and the change of bandgap of samples is verified through theoretical analysis and simulation. After photocatalytic testing, the decomposition of methylene blue dye just required only 80 min under visible light and photocatalytic degradation efficiency of 99.3%. N-rGO/BiVO4 has great potential for the removal of refractory pollutants from wastewater.