Fabrication and photodynamic antimicrobial property analysis of BiFeO3 composite photocatalytic

Visible-light-driven catalytic antimicrobial technologies have garnered significant attention, and enhancing light harvesting and charge-separation efficiencies in photocatalysts is crucial for designing and applying these catalytic materials. This study reports the fabrication of a ZnO/BiFeO 3 heterojunction composite photocatalyst, where BiFeO 3 (BFO) was synthesised using a facile hydrothermal method and ZnO nanoflakes were grown in situ on the BFO surface. The resulting multilayer structure enhances the photoluminescence and provides abundant active sites, while an S-type heterojunction is formed due to the rational valence band matching of the two materials, which establishes a unique channel and contributes to the photocatalytic efficiency. Consequently, the fabricated ZnO/BFO heterostructures exhibited excellent solar-driven photocatalytic antimicrobial activity. This work innovatively constructs an S-scheme ZnO/BiFeO 3 heterojunction through in situ growth, which achieves exceptional antibacterial efficiency (99.9% within 30 min) and enables facile magnetic recovery, providing a novel strategy for sustainable water treatment. This study presents a promising strategy for developing advanced photocatalytic antimicrobial materials and contributes to advancements in water-treatment technology.