LAUSR

Novel alkali metal-based NaBiS2/ZnO nanocomposite photocatalysts were successfully fabricated via a facile hydrothermal technique for the enhancement of the catalytic activity under visible light. The synthesized photocatalysts were characterized using several microscopic and spectroscopic techniques, which confirmed the formation of heterostructured interfaces between the NaBiS2 nanoribbons and ZnO nanosheets. The as-prepared NaBiS2/ZnO nanocomposites exhibited significantly enhanced photocatalytic performance compared with pure NaBiS2 and ZnO alone. In particular, a NaBiS2/ZnO nanocomposite with ZnO loading of 10 mg achieved rhodamine B (RhB) degradation of 99% under visible-light irradiation within 120 min. The enhanced catalytic performance is ascribed to the synergistic effect of the NaBiS2 nanoribbons and ZnO nanosheets. The interface between the NaBiS2 and ZnO allowed the direct transfer of photogenerated electrons, which slowed the recombination of electron–hole pairs and enhanced the charge-separation efficiency. Thus, a probable photocatalytic mechanism is presented for the enhanced degradation of RhB by a NaBiS2/ZnO nanocomposite.