Enhancement of photocatalytic activity of Bi2MoO6 by fluorine substitution

Abstract The fluorine substitution on Bi 2 MoO 6 (F-Bi 2 MoO 6 ) can be easily synthesized by a hydrothermal method. Based on the XRD result, it could be speculated that fluorine ion can substitute oxygen ion in the crystal lattice of Bi 2 MoO 6 . The photodegradation activity of F-Bi 2 MoO 6 almost is 1.9 times as high as the single Bi 2 MoO 6 for degradation of RhB and 1.7 times for decomposition of 2, 4-CDP under the visible light. The enhanced catalytic activity of F-Bi 2 MoO 6 should be attributed to the wider band gap, the more positive VB potential and the higher concentration of OH radicals due to the F doping. Additionally, F doping formed the donor state below the Fermi energy, which can trap the electrons and increase the efficiency of charge separation remarkably.