CaTiO<sub>3</sub> Nanocuboids Decorated with Bi<sub>2</sub>WO<sub>6</sub> Nanoflakes\nfor Stimulating Exciton Dissociation\nin Photocatalytic Dye Degradation

Herein,\nwe tailored a Bi<sub>2</sub>WO<sub>6</sub>–CaTiO<sub>3</sub> (BWO–CTO) nanostructure for the effective degradation\nof various textile dyes such as rhodamine B (RhB), methylene blue\n(MB), methyl orange (MO), and Congo red (CR), under visible light.\nThe nanostructures were developed using a simple hydrothermal method\nand characterized using XRD, FTIR, FE-SEM, HR-TEM, XPS, PL, EIS, and\nMott–Schottky analysis. Different nanostructures were developed\nwith varying BWO to CTO mass ratios (5, 10, 15, and 20%), denoted\nas 5BWO-CTO, 10BWO-CTO, 15BWO-CTO, and 20BWO-CTO, respectively. The\n15BWO-CTO heterostructure exhibits excellent photocatalytic activity\nwith a degradation efficiency of 98.5, 97, 84, and 74% for RhB, MB,\nMO, and CR, respectively, within 60 min of irradiation. The appropriate\nband alignment of the BWO-CTO heterojunction efficiently suppresses\nthe dissociation of excitons and extends their lifespans. The built-in\nelectric field allows the movement of charge carriers from BWO to\nCTO, following the <i>Z</i>-scheme charge transfer mechanism\nwith high redox capacity. The kinetic study indicates a pseudo-first-order\nmodel with a higher reaction rate for 15BWO-CTO (0.0691 min<sup>–1</sup>), good cyclic stability up to four cycles, and high energy efficiency\n(927 kW h/m<sup>3</sup>). The findings affirm the prowess of the BWO–CTO\nheterostructure as a potent photocatalyst for targeted dye degradation.\nThe TOC and LCMS analyses were performed to evaluate the mineralization\nand possible degradation pathways for RhB dye.