Nano-sized coupled photocatalyst (Sn0.25,Ti0.75)O2 powders synthesized by a low temperature molten salt method

Abstract

Nano-sized coupled photocatalyst (Sn0.25,Ti0.75)O2 powders were successfully synthesized by a low temperature molten salt method, where the precursor, a homogeneous precipitate containing titanium and tin cations was mixed with LiNO3 salt, nano-sized (Sn0.25,Ti0.75)O2 powders could be synthesized at 260 °C. The powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and UV–VIS, respectively. Experimental results showed that the product prepared was a pure phase (Sn0.25,Ti0.75)O2 of rutile structure without any other imparities, and composed of nano-sized and spherical particles of about 10 nm. In addition, the UV–VIS showed that the synthesized powders had a good UV absorption and visible light response.