Boron doped BiOBr nanosheets with enhanced photocatalytic inactivation of Escherichia coli

Abstract

Boron (B) doped bismuth oxybromide (B-BiOBr) nanosheets were synthesized using a hydrothermal method and their photocatalytic activities were investigated through inactivating a typical bacterium, Escherichia coli K-12 using fluorescence tubes as visible light (VL) sources. B atoms are successfully doped into the crystal lattice of BiOBr. However, the morphology, crystal structure, and {001}-facet exposed feature of B-BiOBr nanosheets remain unchanged compared with pure BiOBr nanosheets. Significantly, the as-prepared B-BiOBr nanosheets show superior activity in the photocatalytic inactivation of E. coli K-12 over pure BiOBr nanosheets under VL irradiation. Photogenerated h + is evidenced to be the major reactive species accounting for the inactivation process of B-BiOBr. With its electron-deficient characteristics, the B dopant is favorable to accept extra e − from VB of BiOBr, leading to improved charge carrier separation efficiency. The greatly enhanced bacterial inactivation efficiency was attributed to the synergic advantages of enhanced VL adsorption capability and more amount of photogenerated h + with higher oxidative ability. In addition, the destruction process of bacterial cell was also observed from the destruction of cell membrane to the intracellular components.

The synthesis of a BiOClxBr1−x nanostructure photocatalyst with high surface area for the enhanced visible-light photocatalytic reduction of Cr(vi)

“…The CBs values are found to be 0.126 V and À0.69 V for BiOCl and BiOBr, respectively. 33,39 Correspondingly, the VB values for BiOCl and BiOBr are calculated to be 3.61 and 2.06 eV according to their band gap energy (E g ) values. The values determined in this study are similar to those reported in previous literature.…”

Hydrothermal synthesis of BiOBr and BiOBr/CNT composites, their photocatalytic activity and the importance of early Bi6O6(OH)3(NO3)3·1.5H2O formation

“…One way to remediate these problems is by doping or preparing composites materials. For example, boron doped BiOBr nanosheets were shown to inactivate E. coli K-12 using fluorescence tubes as visible light source [54]. In another report, BiOBr was combined with other semiconductors (such as CeO 2 , WO 3 , CaFe 2 O 4 ) to form heterojunctions [17].…”

Two‐dimensional nanomaterials for photocatalytic water disinfection: recent progress and future challenges

“…Boron-doped BiOBr (B-BiOBr) was synthesized by adding H 3 BO 3 in the precursors of BiOBr before hydrothermal treatment. 110 The B-BiOBr with a B/Bi molar ratio of 0.75% performed excellently with a stable VLD inactivation efficiency, with 7-log E. coli cells inactivated within 30 min in all three cycles. What's more, the BiOBr of 2D morphology exhibited an interesting self-doping behavior by a post-treatment under light irradiation.…”

“…After that, a series of exogenously doped and self‐doped photocatalysts were fabricated with the BiOBr nanosheets with a high percentage of {001} facets. Boron‐doped BiOBr (B‐BiOBr) was synthesized by adding H 3 BO 3 in the precursors of BiOBr before hydrothermal treatment . The B‐BiOBr with a B/Bi molar ratio of 0.75% performed excellently with a stable VLD inactivation efficiency, with 7‐log E. coli cells inactivated within 30 min in all three cycles.…”