High-performance visible-light photocatalysis induced by dye-sensitized Ti3+-TiO2 microspheres

Abstract

Strong visible-light absorption and high surface areas contribute to high-perform semiconductor photocatalysis. This work aims to fabricate self-doped Ti3+-TiO2 microspheres and dye sensitized self-doped Ti3+-TiO2 composites with high surface areas and visible-light absorption via one-pot solvothermal strategy for highly enhanced photocatalytic tetracycline degradation under visible-light irradiation. The experimental results showed that the obtained Ti3+-TiO2 microspheres showed enhanced visible-light capture capacity and a larger surface area of 204.9 m2 g−1. Besides, the obtained Eosin Y/Ti3+-TiO2 composites showed efficient visible-light absorption and highly boosted photocatalytic performance towards tetracycline degradation. The highest rate constant for Eosin Y/Ti3+-TiO2-9% composite reached as high as 0.06657 min−1, approximately 8.09 times that of commercial TiO2, strongly demonstrating the significant roles of dye sensitization. Finally, a reasonable dye-sensitization visible-light photocatalytic mechanism was suggested.