Anchoring WO3 nanorods on Nb2C MXene for degrading flotation agent effectively

The 4-dodecylmorpholine (DMP) is widely used during the potassium fertilizers production in Salt Lake Industry, which has a negative impact on the ecological environment of Salt Lake and high-quality products. In this work, we designed a series of WO₃/Nb₂C composites (WONBC-X) with different content ratios to solve the crisis. The photodegradation efficiency of DMP was dramatically improved by the introduction of Nb₂C. The DMP degradation efficiency of WONBC-4 was up to 68.7 %, which was 4 times higher than that of pristine WO₃ under 60 min illumination. This is mainly due to the formation of Schottky heterojunction between WO₃ and Nb₂C interface, which can effectively inhibit the recombination of photoexcited carriers. Moreover, the larger specific surface area and the stronger light capturing ability in the composite also play an active role. The results show that Nb₂C MXene can replace noble metals as a cocatalyst in the efficient photocatalytic system. This work demonstrates that the 1D/2D WO₃/Nb₂C Schottky heterojunction exhibits enhanced photoelectrochemical performance. It also provides an environmentally friendly strategy for protecting the water environment.