Photocatalytic activity of (sulfur, nitrogen)-codoped mesoporous TiO2 thin films

Abstract

Nitrogen and sulfur co-doped mesoporous TiO2 thin films were fabricated using thiourea as a doping resource by the combination of the sol–gel and evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA) processes. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), N2 adsorption–desorption, and UV–vis spectra were performed to characterize the as-synthesized mesoporous TiO2 materials. The XPS result shows that O–Ti–N and O–Ti–S bonds in the (S, N)-codoped mesoporous TiO2 were formed. The resultant mesoporous (S, N)-codoped TiO2 exhibited anatase framework with a high porosity and a narrow pore distribution. After being illuminated for 3 h, methyl orange (MO) could be degraded completely by the co-doped sample under the ultraviolet irradiation, whereas mesoporous TiO2 film without doping could only degrade 60% MO. After being illuminated by visible light, the water contact angles of the mesoporous co-doped TiO2 samples decreased slightly, but the pure TiO2 mesoporous film exhibited no change in the hydrophilicity.