CdSe QDs@ Fe-based metal organic framework composites for improved photocatalytic RhB degradation under visible light

A series of composites based on Fe-based MOF (Fe-BDC) and CdSe quantum dots (CdSe QDs) have been synthesized with CdSe QDs well-embedded into Fe-BDC particles, which are characterized by XRD , SEM, TEM, ICP-OES, FT-IR, N 2 physical sorption , UV–visible DRS , PL and electrochemical measurements. By detecting the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) in aqueous solution under visible light irradiation, the photocatalytic performance of CdSe@Fe-BDC nanocomposites were apparently improved by 5.8 times relative to single Fe-BDC, which can be attributed to the heterostructure formed in CdSe@Fe-BDC. Owing to the perfect interfacial contact, this promotes electron transfer from CdSe to Fe-BDC and significantly facilitates the separation of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs. The photocatalytic mechanism studied by adding sacrificial agents revealed that the predominant active species in the system is hole cation (h + ) and oxygen free radicals (•O 2 − ).