Efficient photocatalytic degradation and sensitive colorimetric detection of levofloxacin by Br-doped BiOCl nanoflowers

The residual antibiotic levofloxacin in animal-derived foods and medical wastewater has seriously endangered human health and ecological environment, therefore, it is crucial to develop a multifunctional platform integrating sensitive detection at low concentration and effective degradation with high concentration. Herein, a nanoflower-structured material BiOCl 0.6 Br 0.4 was synthesized via a simple coprecipitation method, which not only possesses large surface area and abundant active sites, but also owns suitable energy band structure, resulting in unique and superior application performance. Moreover, the photocatalytic degradation rate of levofloxacin as high as 86.8%, and the colorimetric detection limit of levofloxacin was as low as 0.68 μM, which realized the construction of difunctional materials for photocatalytic degradation and colorimetric detection. More significantly, the mechanism of BiOCl 0.6 Br 0.4 participating in photocatalytic degradation and colorimetric detection reaction have been revealed, with active species O 2 – and h + identified as the primary contributors. The stability, recyclability and anti-interference of the material indicate promising prospects for broad practical applications.