Silver vanadates are promising visible-light-responded photocatalysts with suitable bandgap for solar absorption. However, the easy recombination of photogenerated carriers limits their performance. To overcome this obstacle, a novel 2D graphene oxide (GO) modified α-AgVO₃ nanorods (GO/α-AgVO₃) photocatalyst was designed herein to improve the separation of photocarriers. The GO/α-AgVO₃ was fabricated through a facile in-situ coprecipitation method at room temperature. It was found that the as-prepared 0.5 wt% GO/α-AgVO₃ exhibited the most excellent performance for rhodamine B (RhB) decomposition, with an apparent reaction rate constant 18 times higher than that of pure α-AgVO₃ under visible-light irradiation. In light of the first-principles calculations and the hetero junction analysis, the mechanism underpinned the enhanced photocatalytic performance was proposed. The enhanced photocatalytic performance was ascribed to the appropriate bandgap of α-AgVO₃ nanorods for visible-light response and efficient separation of photocarriers through GO nanosheets. This work demonstrates the feasibility of overcoming the easy recombination of photogenerated carriers and provides a valuable GO/α-AgVO₃ photocatalyst for pollutant degradation.

Ceramic fiber photocatalysts fabricated by electrospinning hold great potential in alleviating global environmental and energy issues. However, many challenges remain in improving their photocatalytic efficiencies, such as the limited carrier lifetime and solar energy utilization. To overcome these predicaments, various smart strategies have been invented and realized in ceramic fiber photocatalysts. This review firstly attempts to summarize the fundamental principles and bottlenecks of photocatalytic processes. Subsequently, the approaches of doping, surface plasmon resonance, and up-conversion fluorescent to enlarge the light absorption range realized by precursor composition design, electrospinning parameter control, and proper post heat-treatment process are systematically introduced. Furthermore, methods and achievements of prolonging the lifetime of photogenerated carriers in electrospun ceramic fiber photocatalysts by means of introducing heterostructure and defective composition are reviewed in this article. This review ends with a summary and some perspectives on the future directions of ceramic fiber photocatalysts.

A facile and environmentally friendly template-free method is developed for the fabrication of SnO₂ nanotubes via electrospinning and precisely controlled heat treatment method. It is revealed that the as-spun solid SnO₂ precursor fibers gradually transformed into hollow-structured nanotubes when the temperature was controlled precisely from 200 °C to 600 °C. It was confirmed, that this remarkable structural evolution corporate the respective thermal decomposition of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) at the surface and inside of the fibers. The formation mechanism of the nanotubes has been clarified by systematically investigating the morphology, phase structure, chemical state, and decomposition of the organic compounds during the heat treatment. The as-prepared SnO₂ nanotubes exhibit a high specific surface area of 32.91 m² g⁻¹ and a porous structure with pore sizes of 2 nm and 10–25 nm. The SnO₂ nanotubes were assembled as a photosensor, which demonstrates a fast response upon UV light illumination at 254 nm. From this discovery, it is expected that a new method for fabricating nanotubes will be established and the development of materials with a higher functionality will be promoted.