Facile Hydrothermal Synthesis of Tungsten Tri-oxide/Titanium Di-oxide Nanohybrid Structures as Photocatalyst for Wastewater Treatment Application

Abstract

In this study, tungsten trioxide/titanium dioxide (WO3–TiO2) nanohybrid structures were prepared using a facile hydrothermal method. The nanosheets-like morphology was achieved for the prepared WO3–TiO2 nanohybrid that were confirmed by scanning electron microscopy. Provided X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results also confirm the element existence and surface composition of the nanohybrid structure. The optical properties of the WO3–TiO2 nanohybrid were verified using UV–Visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV–Vis DRS) and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The UV–Vis DRS results indicated that the absorption edge for the WO3–TiO2 nanohybrid found a red shift towards the visible region due to the reduced bandgap (2.83 eV). The photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared WO3–TiO2 nanohybrid was evaluated by the photocatalytic degradation of Orange G dye in wastewaters under visible light. 94% Orange G dye was degraded in 210 min at neutral pH in the presence of WO3–TiO2 nanohybrid, which indicates the enhanced photocatalytic activity. The photo-luminescence technique has also confirmed the formation of –OH radicals during photodegradation by utilizing terephthalic acid as a probe molecule. These results indicate that the prepared nanohybrid material is a simple, low-cost, and efficient photocatalyst for the degradation of pollutants in wastewater treatment applications.