Enhanced photocatalytic activity of zeolite-encapsulated TiO2 clusters by complexation with organic additives and N-doping.

In the literature it was found that titanium oxide clusters of a few metal atoms encapsulated inside the micropores of zeolite Y exhibit large blue shifts in the Ti-O ligand-to-metal charge-transfer band as compared to non-encapsulated bulk titanium dioxide particles. This blue shift of the Ti-O absorption band is believed to have a negative effect on the photocatalytic activity of zeolite-encapsulated TiO2. We report here on circumventing this problem and increasing visible-light absorption by means of a red shift of the absorption band caused by addition of some organic molecular modifiers containing acidic OH groups that can strongly bind with titanol groups TiOH. In the studied series of zeolite-encapsulated TiO2 samples, the red shift of the optical spectrum follows the order: catechol > 4-aminobenzoic acid > benzoic acid. Also N-doping of zeolite-encapsulated TiO2 clusters by thermal treatment with urea leads to a red shift of the TiO2 absorption band that depends on the annealing and hydration conditions. By comparison to the degradation of phenol in aqueous solution, we have demonstrated that these changes in the absorption spectrum on addition of the organic modifier are also reflected in the photocatalytic activity of the samples; a greater increase in photocatalytic activity (about 30%) was observed for the additive catechol.     

Synergistic effects in La/N codoped TiO2 anatase (101) surface correlated with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity

The interaction between implanted La, substitutional N, and an oxygen vacancy at TiO(2) anatase (101) surface has been investigated by means of first-principles density function theory calculations to investigate the origin of enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity of La/N-codoped anatase observed in experiments. Our calculations suggest that both the adsorptive and substitutional La-doped TiO(2) anatase (101) surfaces are probably defective configurations in experiments. The h-Cave-adsorbed La doping decreases the formation energy for the substitutional N implantation and vice versa, while the charge compensation effects do not take effect between the adsorptive La and substitutional N dopants, resulting in some partially occupied states in the band gap acting as traps of the photoexcited electrons. The Ti(5c)-substituted La doping decreases the energy required for the substitutional N implantation, and the substitutional La and N codoping promotes the formation of an oxygen vacancy, which migrates from the O(sb-3c) site at the inner layer toward the surface O(b) site. For the substitutional La/N-codoped (Ti(5c)_O(3c-down)) surface, the charge compensation between the substitutional La and substitutional N leads to the formation of two isolated occupied N(s)-O π* impurity levels in the gap, while the excitation energy from the higher impurity level to the CBM decreases by about 0.89 eV. After further considering an oxygen vacancy on the Ti(5c)_O(3c-down) surface, the two electrons on the double donor levels (O(b) vacancy) passivate the same amount of holes on the acceptor levels (substitutional La and N), forming the acceptor-donor-acceptor compensation pair, which provides a reasonable mechanism for the enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity of La/N codoped TiO(2) anatase. This knowledge may aid the further design and construction of new effective visible-light photocatalysts.     

A mesoporous Pt/TiO2 nanoarchitecture with catalytic and photocatalytic functions

A novel metal/semiconductor nanocomposite with catalytic and photocatalytic functions has been prepared. The new material consists of highly dispersed platinum (Pt) nanoparticles embedded in a cubic mesoporous nanocrystalline anatase (meso-nc-TiO2) thin film. The porous thin film possesses a narrow pore-size distribution and a large surface area. The diameter of the Pt cluster can be controlled to below 5 nm, and the high dispersion of these clusters gives rise to catalytic activity for the oxidation of carbon monoxide, an important reaction for automobile exhaust treatment. This novel ordered mesoporous Pt/TiO2 nanoarchitecture is also a promising photochemical material, as demonstrated by the photo-driven killing of Micrococcus lylae cells on the film.     

Plasmon-resonance-enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity of Ag quantum dots/TiO2 microspheres for methyl orange degradation

We successfully prepared Ag quantum dots modified TiO₂ microspheres by facile solvothermal and calcination method. The as-prepared Ag quantum dots/TiO₂ microspheres were characterized by scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The Ag quantum dots/TiO₂ photocatalyst showed excellent visible light absorption and efficient photocatalytic activity for methyl orange degradation. And the sample with the molar ratio of 0.05 (Ag to Ti) showed the best visible light photocatalytic activity for methyl orange degradation, mainly because of the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effects of Ag quantum dots to generate electron and hole pairs for enhanced visible light photocatalysis. Finally, possible visible light photocatalytic mechanism of Ag quantum dots/TiO₂ microspheres for methyl orange degradation was proposed in detail.     

Bismuth-doped ordered mesoporous TiO2: visible-light catalyst for simultaneous degradation of phenol and chromium

A controllable and reproducible synthesis of highly ordered two-dimensional hexagonal mesoporous, crystalline bismuth-doped TiO(2) nanocomposites with variable Bi ratios is reported here. Analyses by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveal that the well-ordered mesostructure is doped with Bi, which exists as Bi(3+) and Bi((3+x+)). The Bi-doped mesoporous TiO(2) (ms-TiO(2)) samples exhibit improved photocatalytic activities for simultaneous phenol oxidation and chromium reduction in aqueous suspension under visible and UV light over the pure ms-TiO(2), P-25, and conventional Bi-doped titania. The high catalytic activity is due to both the unique structural characteristics and the Bi doping. This new material extends the spectral response from UV to the visible region, and reduces electron-hole recombination, which renders the 2.0% Bi-doped ms-TiO(2) photocatalyst highly responsive to visible light.     

One-step fabrication and high photocatalytic activity of porous TiO2 hollow aggregates by using a low-temperature hydrothermal method without templates

Porous TiO2 hollow aggregates have been synthesized on a large scale by means of a simple hydrothermal method without using any templates. The as-prepared products were characterized by means of field emission scanning electron microscopy, XRD, TEM, nitrogen adsorption, UV/Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and FTIR spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity of the aggregates was demonstrated through the photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B. Structural characterization indicates that the porous TiO2 aggregates are 500-800 nm in diameter and display mesoporous structure. The average pore sizes and BET surface areas of the aggregates are 12 nm and 168 m2 g-1, respectively. Optical adsorption investigations show that the aggregates possess an optical band-gap energy of 3.36 eV. The as-prepared products were substantially more effective photocatalysts than the commercially available photocatalyst P25. The dye degradation rate of the porous TiO2 hollow aggregates is more than twice that of P25. The high photoactivities of the aggregates can be attributed to the combined effects of several factors, namely, large surface areas, the existence of mesopores, and the high band-gap energy. In addition, the as-prepared products can be easily recycled.     

Preparation, characterization and photocatalytic activity of visible light driven chlorine-doped TiO2

A novel chlorine-doped titanium dioxide catalyst with visible light response was prepared by hydrolysis of tetrabutyl titanate in hydrochloric acid. The catalyst samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-Vis DRS). Results showed that the doped element of Cl lowered the temperatures of phase transformation of TiO₂ from amorphous to anatase and from anatase to rutile. The absorption edge of chlorine-doped TiO₂ calcined at 300°C shifted to visible light region. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results proved that chlorine existed in the TiO₂ crystal lattice as anion. The photocatalytic degradation of phenol showed that under visible light (λ > 400 nm) irradiation, the chlorine-doped TiO₂ calcined at 300°C displayed the best performance, the degradation ratio of phenol was 42.5% after 120 min. Translated from Chinese Journal of Catalysis, 2006, 27(10): 890–894 [译自: 催化学报]     

Mesoporous Au/TiO2 Nanocomposite Microspheres for Visible‐Light Photocatalysis

Mesoporous Au/TiO₂ nanocomposite microspheres have been synthesized by using a microemulsion‐based bottom‐up self‐assembly (EBS) process starting from monodisperse gold and titania nanocrystals as building blocks. The microspheres had large surface areas (above 270 m² g^?1) and open mesopores (about 5 nm), which led to the adsorption‐driven concentration of organic molecules in the vicinity of the microspheres. Au nanoparticles, which were stably confined within the microspheres, enhanced the absorption over the broad UV/Vis/NIR spectroscopic range, owing to their strong surface plasmon resonance (SPR); as a result, the Au nanoparticles promoted the visible‐light photo‐induced degradation of organic compounds.     

TiO2/UV/O2和TiO2/UV/N2体系降解水中对氯硝基苯

以商用TiO₂P25为催化剂,分别在TiO₂/UV/O₂和TiO₂/UV/N₂两种体系下进行降解对氯硝基苯(pCNB)试验.采用ESR对两种体系下光催化反应形成的·OH进行测定,利用LC-MS对两种体系下反应形成的中间产物进行了定性和定量分析,最后对pCNB降解过程中氯和硝基的存在形式进行了研究.结果表明:TiO₂/UV/O₂体系的催化降解效果要明显优于TiO₂/UV/N₂体系;两种反应体系都有·OH产生,并且TiO₂/UV/O₂体系产生的·OH的量多于TiO₂/UV/N₂体系产生的·OH的量;TiO₂/UV/O₂体系形成的中间产物的种类要多于TiO₂/UV/N₂体系形成的,苯环上的氢、氯、硝基均可被·OH取代形成对硝基酚(pNP)、5-氯-2-硝基酚(5-C-2-PN)等酚类物质;两种体系下均有Cl^-和NO₂^-存在,其中Cl^-生成势与pCNB的去除势一致,只有TiO₂/UV/O₂体系中存在NO₃^-.     

Studies on photocatalytic activity of Ag/TiO2 films

Ag/TiO₂ photocatalytic films were produced by hybrid sol-gel method. The photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange (MO) in aqueous solution under 365 nm irradiation on TiO₂ and Ag/TiO₂ thin films was investigated. The state and amount of Ag species within the film and the enhancement mechanism of photocatalytic activity of Ag/TiO₂ were discussed. With a loading molar ratio of Ag/Ti = 0.135 in TiO₂ film, the maximum catalytic efficiency was observed. __________ Translated from Journal of Beijing Normal University (Natural Sciences), 2005, 41(6) (in Chinese)     

Synthesis of 3D hierarchical porous TiO2/InVO4 nanocomposites with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic properties

Three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical porous TiO₂/InVO₄ nanocomposites were fabricated by loading TiO₂ nanoparticles on the surface of porous InVO₄ microspheres. X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV–vis spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) were adopted to analyze the structure–property relationship of samples. The results show that the surface of as-prepared TiO₂/InVO₄ nanocomposites are composed of uniformly interconnected bi-phase nanocrystals, forming a close interface between these two components, which is favorable for the highly efficient interparticle electron transfer to achieve enhanced photocatalytic properties. However, the adsorption ability is decreased due to the loading of TiO₂ nanoparticles on the surface of InVO₄. Therefore, under the joint action of these factors, the TiO₂/InVO₄ nanocomposites achieve the best photocatalytic activity when the mole ratio of In:Ti reaches 4:1, and the visible-light photocatalytic activity is about as 3.3 times high as that of pure InVO₄ without modification.     

Defect induced nickel,nitrogen-codoped mesoporous TiO2 microspheres with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity

Nickel, nitrogen-codoped mesoporous TiO₂ microspheres (Ni–N–TiO₂) with high surface area, and an effective direct band gap energy of ∼2.58 eV. Nickel sulfate used as the Ni source and ammonia gas as the N source here. The efficiency of the as-prepared samples was investigated by monitoring the degradation of Rhodamine B under visible light irradiation. The experimental results indicate that Ni-doped mesoporous TiO₂ microspheres show higher photocatalytic activity than mesoporous TiO₂ microspheres under visible light irradiation. It mainly due to that the electron trap level (Ni²⁺/Ni⁺) promoting the separation of charge carriers and the oxygen vacancies inducing the visible light absorption. In addition, Ni–N–TiO₂ shows enhanced activity compared with Ni–TiO₂. Codopants and dopants are found to be uniformly distributed in TiO₂ matrix. Among the all samples the 0.5% molar quantity of Ni dopant and 500 °C 2 h nitriding condition gives the highest photocatalytic activity. The treatment of ammonia gas on Ni–TiO₂ sample induced oxygen vancancies, substitutional and interstitial N. A suitable treatment by ammonia gas also promote separation of charge carriers and the absorption of visible light. The active species generated in the photocatalytic system were also investigated. The strategy presented here gives a promising route towards the development of a metal and non-metal codoped semiconductor materials for applied photocatalysis and related applications.     

Effect of carbon content on photocatalytic activity of C/TiO2 composite

A series of carbon-covered titania (CCT) were prepared via pyrolysis of sucrose highly dispersed on titania surface in flowing N₂. The samples were characterized by XRD, BET, DTA-TG, UV—Vis, and their photocatalytic properties were evaluated with two model pollutants, methylene blue (MB) and rhodamine B (RB), at room temperature. The effect of carbon content on photocatalytic activity of the C/TiO₂ composite was investigated. It was found that the effect of carbon content is different for different pollutants or different light sources. For three tested samples, under UV illumination CCT01 has the highest activity for MB photocatalytic degradation, while in the case of RB, CCT02 is the most active photocatalyst. Under visible light illumination, CCT005 has the highest activity for both MB and RB photocatalytic degradation. Translated from Chinese Journal of Catalysis, 2006, 27(1): (in Chinese)     

Enhanced visible-light photocatalytic oxidation capability of carbon-doped TiO2 via coupling with fly ash

A carbon-doped TiO₂/fly ash support (C-TiO₂/FAS) composite photocatalyst was successfully synthesized through sol impregnation and subsequent carbonization. The carbon dopants were derived from the organic species generated during the synthesis of the C-TiO₂/FAS composite. A series of analytical techniques, such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-Vis DRS), were used to characterize the properties of the prepared samples. The results indicated that C-TiO₂ was successfully coated on the FAS surface. Coupling between C-TiO₂ and FAS resulted in the formation of Si–O–C and Al–O–Ti bonds at their interface. The formation of Si–O–C and Al–O–Ti bonds gave rise to a positive shift of the valence band edge of C-TiO₂ and enhanced its oxidation capability of photogenerated holes as well as photodegradation efficiency of methyl orange. Moreover, the C-TiO₂/FAS photocatalyst exhibited favorable reusability and separability. This work may provide a new route for tuning the electronic band structure of TiO₂.