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Non-noble metal for surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-induced nano-enzymatic photoelectrochemical (PEC) biosensors is a promising method for broad applications. Non-noble metal bismuth (Bi) is gradually being valued for their properties such as non-toxicity, abundant reserves, and good catalysis. Meanwhile, metallic Bi nanoparticles (NPs) have superior SPR properties similar to that of noble metal. Therefore, a non-noble metal Bi/BiVO4 photoanode based on SPR was designed for the PEC detection of H2O2 in this work. The synergistic effect of BiVO4 with suitable band gap (2.5 eV) and Bi NPs with superior SPR effectively reduces the recombination of photogenerated electrons and holes, which significantly improves the PEC activity of Bi/BiVO4 electrode at low voltage. The in situ Bi/BiVO4/FTO photoelectrode not only exhibits a more comprehensive linear range of 0.005–2.6 mM with a lower detection limit of 2.0 μM but also possesses excellent selectivity for the determination of H2O2 because the coexisting substances are difficult to be oxidized at 0 V bias voltage. The investigation of Bi/BiVO4-based sensor has contributed to the development of non-noble metal for SPR-induced PEC biosensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bismuth (Bi) is a particular element with many distinctive properties such as low toxicity or nontoxicity, high specific gravity, photoluminescence, photoelectronic and photovoltaic effects, strong oxidation ability, water insolubility, etc. These distinctive properties help to boost various applications of Bi. The recent decades have witnessed a dramatic increase in the application research of Bi‐based materials, especially on photocatalysis. This paper begins with an introduction to the history of Bi, followed by a summary of its distinctive properties, and then provides a comprehensive overview of its applications in photocatalysis, sensing, medicine, and diagnosis and treatments, with a particular focus on near‐infrared photocatalysis, flexible wearable sensor, in vivo detection and therapeutics. Finally, the main challenges and development prospects of the Bi‐based materials are introduced. With the development trends of Bi research discussed, this paper is aimed at improving the knowledge of Bi and arising the research interest of Bi in the hope of extending the applications of Bi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In2S3/BiOI composites were synthesized at room temperature which significantly improved the photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) under visible light irradiation. Structure and morphology characterization techniques have been performed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction measurements (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS). The separation ability of photogenerated carriers is enhanced due to the formation of heterojunctions of the composites. The best performance is obtained when the content of In2S3 is 7 wt%. Compared with In2S3 and BiOI alone, 7-In2S3/BiOI has the highest specific surface area and can provide more active sites. Based on the photo-electrochemical characterization and free radical tests, a photocatalytic mechanism of In2S3/BiOI composites in the presence of superoxide radicals (˙O2−) and holes (h+) is reasonably proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an organic–inorganic hybrid material, metal organic frameworks (MOFs) has a great development prospect in the field of photocatalysis. Herein, the in situ growth of Bi-based MOF (CAU-17) on Bi2WO6 was utilized to obtain Bi2WO6/CAU-17 photocatalyst by a simple solvothermal transformation method. Bi2WO6 can be used both as template and Bi source. The structure and morphology of Bi2WO6/CAU-17 composites were characterized by X-ray diffraction patterns, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectra, UV–vis diffuse reflectance absorption spectra and scanning electronic microscopy, and transmission electron microscope. The results showed Bi2WO6/CAU-17 composites were successfully constructed by growing CAU-17 in situ on Bi2WO6. Compared with pure Bi2WO6 and CAU-17, Bi2WO6/CAU-17-1 h composite exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity for the degradation of Rhodamine B, and its rate constant was 0.02083 min−1. In addition, the quantum yield and space time yield of the obtained photocatalyst were 2.56 × 10−6 molecules/photon and 1.28 × 10−7 molecules/photon·mg, respectively. Bi2WO6/CAU-17 also exhibits better values of the modified FOM (figure of merit). This method provides a potential opportunity for the development of in situ growth of similar MOF materials for water treatment and other possible applications in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BiOCl has been identified to be a promising semiconductor material with exceptional performance for photodegradation of organic pollutants. In this work, a feasible strategy to synthesize octagon‐like BiOCl nanoflakes (G‐BiOCl NFs) with novel morphology was developed by one‐step solvothermal reaction in ethylene glycol/water solution with the addition of glutamate acid. The obtained G‐BiOCl NFs with large surface areas and negatively charged surfaces possessed excellent photocatalytic activity for the degradation of organic pollutant Rhodamine B (RhB). RhB was almost completely degraded in only 4 mins under ultraviolet−visible light irradiation. It was confirmed that the holes and.O2− played crucial roles in the RhB photocatalytic degradation process. This work provided a new strategy for the preparation of efficient photocatalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The separation of aromatics from aliphatics is challenging and energy-consuming because of the very close boiling points among these compounds and the possibility of forming azeotropes. In this work, we designed two imidazolium-based dicationic ionic liquids, [C5(MIM)2][NTf2]2 (DIL1) and [C6(MIM)2][NTf2]2 (DIL2), and found that they could highly efficiently extract aromatics from aliphatics. Three different aromatic and aliphatic mixtures, toluene/n-heptane, benzene/n-hexane and benzene/cyclohexane, were used to investigate the universality of DILs. The extractive performance of both DILs was compared with those of other promising ILs and sulfolane. The mixtures of toluene and aliphatics with different chain lengths were also investigated. The results showed that the two DILs had relatively high selectivity and distribution coefficients for different aromatic and aliphatic mixtures. At 30 °C, the highest values of selectivity and distribution coefficient for toluene/n-heptane, benzene/n-hexane and benzene/cyclohexane systems were 50.4, 64.8, and 24.9 and 1.44, 2.44, and 2.25, respectively. The performance of DILs at 30 °C was better than that at 40 °C. Besides, a higher selectivity could be obtained when toluene is used with a longer chain aliphatic, such as a selectivity of 61.4 could be obtained when the aliphatic was n-nonane. The study of the physicochemical properties of DILs showed that they were more stable than the previous ones. In a word, the two DILs were evaluated as potential solvents for the separation of aromatics from aliphatics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]