Synthesis of a double type-II CdS/Zn2In2S5/g-C3N4 heterojunction photocatalyst for the photodegradation of tetracycline under visible light

Herein, the ternary CdS/Zn 2 In 2 S 5 /g-C 3 N 4 (CdS/ZIS/CN) heterojunction photocatalyst was successfully prepared via a one-pot method for photodegradation of tetracycline (TC) under visible light irradiation. The surface morphology, structure and optical properties of the prepared photocatalytic material were analyzed by XRD , SEM , TEM, UV–vis DRS, FT-IR and PL . Moreover, the experimental results exhibited that the ternary CdS/ZIS/CN photocatalyst revealed excellent photocatalytic activity compared with g-C 3 N 4 . In this work, 94.73% of TC (20 mg/L, pH=11) was degraded by 0.5 g/L 30CdS/ZIS/CN within 60 min of visible light irradiation. Additionally, the degradation rate of the photocatalyst decreased by about 9.41% after the fourth cycle, indicating its high stability and reusability. Subsequently, a possible double type-II mechanism of photodegradation was eventually provided based on active radical capture experiments. The current investigation provided a promising strategy to construct the high-efficiency heterojunction photocatalyst to degrade antibiotic contaminants.