Synthesis of RGO and g-C3N4 hybrid with WO3/Bi2WO6 to boost degradation of nitroguanidine under visible light irradiation

A cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) assisted bottom-up route to prepare Bi2WO6 fraction-let materials. WO3/Bi2WO6 binary hybrid with 2-D structure was designed by a facile hydrothermal process. Subsequently, RGO and g-C3N4 nanosheets were incorporated into WO3/Bi2WO6 via a cost-effective process. These nano-components of smart materials could simultaneously absorb and degrade contaminants in visible light. Nitroguanidine is an energetic material and harmful to the environment when released into the water. According to the data, NQ is more soluble in water than TNT or RDX, so NQ is more likely to cause water pollution. In this paper, the NQ in wastewater was degraded by using the RGO and g-C3N4 doped WO3/Bi2WO6. The results indicated that RGO-WO3/Bi2WO6(R-W-B) and g-C3N4-WO3/Bi2WO6 (G-W-B) showed greater degradation rate (0.02731 min− 1 and 0.02462 min− 1) as compare to WO3/Bi2WO6 (0.0084 min− 1). The improved photocatalytic performance of G-W-B or R-W-B accredited to the cascade structure of the synthesized materials. For G-W-B, the holes transferred from WO3 to Bi2WO6 and then to g-C3N4 which prolong the lifetime of photo-generated charges via the valence band potential gradient. The electrons transferred from Bi2WO6 to WO3 then to RGO for R-W-B.