Sr6Bi2O9 powders were synthesized by a sal-gel method using Bi(NO3)(3)center dot 5H(2)O and Sr(NO3)(2) as the starting materials and were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectrum (UV-vis DRS), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrum and Raman spectrum. The as-prepared Sr6Bi2O9 powders showed an efficient photocatalytic activity in the decomposition of 4BS dye (a widely used azo dye) and 4-nitrophenol (4-NP, a priority pollutant) under visible light irradiation (A > 400 nm). TA-PL analysis reveals that HO center dot was not the dominant photooxidant. The radical scavengers experiments indicated that the main active species was O-2 in the photocatalytic degradation of dye under visible irradiation. A possible photodegradation mechanism of organic pollutants by the visible light driven Sr6Bi2O9 was discussed. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.