Facile synthesis of direct Z-scheme PPy/NH2-UiO-66 heterojunction for enhanced photocatalytic Cr(VI) reduction, industrial electroplating wastewater treatment, and tetracycline degradation

Z-scheme heterojunction photocatalysts generally have excellent redox ability and robust removal efficiency for contaminants in water. Herein, we combined p-type PPy and n-type NH₂-UiO-66 by ball milling to prepare a direct Z-scheme PPy/NH₂-UiO-66 photocatalyst with ultra-high redox potential. Notably, the optimized efficiency of PPy/NH₂-UiO-66 (the mass ratio of PPy to NH₂-UiO-66 is 1 wt%, named PPy/NU-1) rapidly reduced Cr(VI) (>95%, 60 min) and TC degradation (>90%, 180 min) at 100 W LED light. Moreover, the PPy/NU-1 has high stability and good anti-interference ability, which can effectively remove Cr(VI) from industrial electroplating wastewater, and the Cr(VI) removal rate is 99%, which meets the industrial wastewater standard and has the potential attraction of actual wastewater treatment. In addition, the techniques of UV-Vis diffuse reflection, electron spin resonance (ESR), photoluminescence (PL), and photoelectrochemical measurement showed that PPy/NH₂-UiO-66 composites improved the light capture ability, thereby improving the photocatalytic efficiency. The PPy/NU-1 has a very high redox potential by constructing a Z-scheme heterojunction, enhances the interfacial charge transfer ability, and improves the separation efficiency of photogenerated carriers. Finally, the mechanism of the Z-scheme was systematically by nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) and p-phthalic acid (TA) transformation, ESR experiments, and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. This work provides a strategy for the preparation of visible photocatalysts with excellent photocatalytic activity and provides new insights for interfacial charge transfer and molecular oxygen activation.