Facile Synthesis of g-C(3)N(4)/TiO(2)/Hectorite Z-Scheme Composite and Its Visible Photocatalytic Degradation of Rhodamine B

A novel g-C(3)N(4)/TiO(2)/hectorite Z-scheme composites with oxygen vacancy (Vo) defects and Ti(3+) were synthesized by so-gel method and high temperature solid phase reaction. This composite exhibited high visible photo-catalytic degradation of rhodamine B (RhB). The apparent rate constant of g-C(3)N(4)/TiO(2)/hectorite was 0.01705 min(−1), which is approximately 5.38 and 4.88 times that of P25 and g-C(3)N(4), respectively. The enhancement of photo-catalytic efficiency of the composites can be attributed to the great light harvesting ability, high specific surface area and effective separation of electrons(e(−)) and holes(h(+)). The F element from Hectorite causes the formation of Vo and Ti(3+) in TiO(2), making it responsive to visible light. The effective separation of e(−) and h(+) mainly results from Z-scheme transfer of photo-produced electrons in g-C(3)N(4)/TiO(2) interface. The composites can be easily recycled and the degradation rate of the RhB still reached 84% after five cycles, indicating its good reusability.