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Bi/BiVO 4 microstructures with novel hollow chainlike morphology were successfully fabricated for the first time, and their application as photocatalyst is explored. Composites composed of metallic Bi and amorphous BiVO 4 (denoted as Bi/a-BiVO 4 ) are first prepared through a simple solvothermal route using ethylene glycol as solvent and then hydrothermally treated in a basic solution to crystallize BiVO 4 . The Bi content in the Bi/BiVO 4 microstructures can be facilely adjusted by changing the molar ratio of Bi 3+ to V 5+ in the reaction system. The photocatalytic activity of the Bi/BiVO 4 microstructures is assessed by photodegradation of rhodamine B (RhB) under visible-light illumination. The Bi/BiVO 4 microstructures exhibit an obviously improved photocatalytic performance compared to the BiVO 4 and Bi. The synergistic effects of BiVO 4 and Bi may contribute to the improved photocatalytic activity. The present research may provide a new approach to design and fabricate BiVO 4 -based photocatalyst with high photocatalytic activity.

BiVO-based composites have been extensively investigated as promising photocatalysts due to their strong visible-light absorption. In this work, novel Bi/BiVO composites with excellent photocatalytic performance were firstly fabricated via a simple hydrothermal method, using BiVO as a self-sacrificing template and NH·HO as a reductant. In the hydrothermal process, partial BiVO was reduced to form metallic Bi nanoparticles, which were deposited on the surface of BiVO. The Bi content in the Bi/BiVO composites could be easily tuned by controlling the concentration of the NH·HO solution. The photocatalytic performance of the Bi/BiVO composites was examined by studying the photodecomposition of RhB under visible-light illumination. The experimental results revealed that the Bi/BiVO composites exhibit high visible-light photocatalytic activity for the photodegradation of RhB compared with that of pure BiVO. This enhanced photocatalytic activity likely originates from the strong visible-light absorption and high separation efficiency of photogenerated electron-hole pairs by Bi nanoparticles. This work presents a new approach for the development of Bi/BiVO composite photocatalysts with high activity and stability.

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