Trioctylphosphine (TOP)-free synthesis of TiSe2 plates for enhanced photocatalytic degradation performance of Rhodamine B dyes

Abstract

Two-dimensional (2D) photocatalysts have attracted increasing attentions in the past decades due to their unique physical and chemical properties. In this work, the photocatalytic performance of TiSe2 plates and the corresponding photocatalytic degradation mechanism for Rhodamine B (Rh B) solution were studied for the first time. The TiSe2 plates were successfully synthesized via a facile TOP-free chemical method at different growth time. The crystal phase, morphology, crystal structure, optical properties, surface processes electrons (e−) - holes (h+) pairs and electrochemical property were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscope, UV–vis spectroscopy, photoluminescence, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity of TiSe2 plates was evaluated by the degradation of Rh B under sunlight irradiation. Compared with commercial TiO2 (P25) photocatalyst, the TiSe2 photocatalysts exhibited enhanced photocatalytic degradation of Rh B. TiSe2 photocatalyst prepared at 90 min exhibited best photocatalytic activity of 96% in 30 min under sunlight irradiation. This work suggested that TiSe2 plates could be a promising photocatalyst candidate and might stimulate the further studies of TiSe2-based photocatalysts for environmental-pollution applications.