Solvothermal synthesis of facet-dependent BiVO(4) photocatalyst with enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutant: assessment of toxicity by zebrafish embryo

The BiVO(4) photocatalyst plays a very important role in photocatalytic reactions attributed to its unique crystalline structure, size, morphology and surface area. Herein, we report a facet-dependent monoclinic scheelite BiVO(4) (m-BiVO(4)) photocatalyst with uniform truncated square (18 sided) hexagonal bipyramidal shape synthesized by a template-free and surfactant-free solvothermal method using ethylene glycol solvent under cost-effective and mild reactions. The structural, morphological and optical properties of the m-BiVO(4) photocatalyst are widely characterized. The photocatalytic activity of the m-BiVO(4) photocatalyst is tested towards 20 ppm methylene blue (MB) dye aqueous solution as a pollutant model under visible light irradiation. Enhanced visible-light driven photoactivity with dye degradation efficiency of approx. 91% at a rate of 0.388 × 10(−2) min(−1) is obtained, presumably due to the presence of high-active (040) facets. Zebrafish embryo toxicity test of treated MB dye solution reveals the degradation and toxicity reduction of the MB dye. Moreover, the recycling experiment validates that the m-BiVO(4) photocatalyst has a great structural stability with reliable performance. This work may provide a lucid and expedient strategy to synthesize highly crystalline (040) facet-dependent semiconductor photocatalyst toward dye degradation and obviously industrial wastewater remediation.