Gray bismuth chloride nanosheets with a highly enhanced
electric
field intensity were prepared by a simple and efficient method. Their
energy gap is reduced to 2.35 eV. The prepared nanosheets show high
photocatalytic activity for the degradation of rhodamine B under visible
light. The resulting samples were characterized by X-ray diffractometry,
high-resolution scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron
spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy, UV–vis diffuse reflectance
spectroscopy, specific surface area analysis, electrochemical analysis,
electron paramagnetic resonance, and UV–vis spectroscopy. The
photocatalytic activity of prepared BiOCl was evaluated by the degradation
of RhB. The prepared BiOCl sample (0.5 g/L) could completely degrade
RhB (10 mg/L) within 10 min, and its visible photocatalytic activity
was 80 times that of the original white BiOCl. Superoxide radicals
were the main active substance involved in organic degradation.