A cost-effective quick-making strategy for visible light-responsive titanium dioxide

Abstract

The formation of anatase structure usually requires high-temperature heat treatment at 450–500 °C for 30–150 min, which causes energy waste, particle agglomeration and significant loss of photocatalytic performance of TiO2. In this paper, we proposed a low-temperature quick-making strategy for visible light-responsive TiO2, which involves ultrahigh electron density cold plasma spraying combined with rapid heating (CPRH) treatment at a quite lower temperature than traditional methods. We explored the effect of calcination temperature and time on the crystallization behavior of the plasma sprayed TiO2. Anatase crystal structures are found in CPRH samples calcined at 275 °C in 10 min. The decrease of Ti3+, the increase of N-doping, and the preservation of –OH groups are detected in CPRH-300 samples. Also, the higher visible-light photoactivity than the conventional sol-gel TiO2 crystallized at 450 °C is obtained. The proposed cost-effective CPRH strategy demonstrates significant practical value for energy conservation.