Abstract
Pure TiO2 and Cu–doped TiO2 containing different amounts of copper ions with anatase/rutile/brookite triphasic structure were successfully synthesized through a simple hydrothermal method. The obtained samples were characterized by X–ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), X–ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV−vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-DRS), photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area analyze (BET). Both pure and Cu–doped TiO2 show relatively high photocatalytic activity owing to their considerable surface areas. Moreover, the three–phase coexisting structure and the conversion between Cu2+ and Cu+ ions facilitate the separation of photogenerated electrons and holes, which is favorable for photocatalytic performance. 1%Cu–TiO2 exhibits the highest photocatalytic activity and the degradation degree of rhodamine B (RhB) reaches 93.5% after 30 min, which is higher than that of monophasic/biphasic 1%Cu–TiO2. ·O2− radical is the main active species, and h+ and ·OH species are subsidiary in the degradation process.
Highlights
Degradation of water pollutants by photocatalysts is a promising technology because of its environmental protection and validity [1,2,3]
Pure TiO2 and Cu–TiO2 were synthesized by a hydrothermal process
X–ray diffraction (XRD), Raman and HRTEM results confirm that the anatase/rutile/brookite triphasic structure form in both pure TiO2 and Cu–TiO2 samples
Summary
Degradation of water pollutants by photocatalysts is a promising technology because of its environmental protection and validity [1,2,3]. It has been widely reported that Cu doping can modify the structure of TiO2 and enhance the photocatalytic activity [13, 14]. Li et al [15] successfully synthesized TiO2 photocatalysts with different proportions of anatase and rutile mixed phases in an acidic hydrothermal system. The researches on TiO2 with anatase/rutile/brookite triphasic structure have been reported [10, 17]. Kaplan et al [17] prepared TiO2 with anatase, rutile and brookite polymorph phases by combining sol–gel process and hydrothermal treatment. It has been proved that TiO2 with triphasic structure exhibits better photocatalytic activity than anatase or rutile. Pure and Cu–doped TiO2 nanocomposites with anatase/brookite/rutile triphasic structure were prepared by a facile hydrothermal method. The prepared samples were systematically characterized and their photocatalytic activity was assessed through the decomposition of RhB under xenon lamp irradiation
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