Visible-light-driven titania/silica photocatalyst co-doped with boron and ferrum

Abstract

The sol–gel route was employed to prepare a titania/silica photocatalyst co-doped with boron and ferrum. The microstructure and the optical property of the photocatalyst were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV–vis diffusive reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and N 2 adsorption–desorption isotherm. The decomposition of phenol under visible light irradiation was used as probe reaction to evaluate the photocatalytic activity. The results revealed that the dopants could inhibit phase transformation of TiO 2, and that there were intimate molecule-level interactions between titania and silica. The doping boron led to the response to visible light. The doping ferrum, which existed in the form of Fe 2O 3 and dispersed on the surface of TiO 2, increased photoquantum efficiency and resulted in the enhancement of catalytic performance. The photocatalytic activity related to the annealing temperature and component. The synergistic effects of co-doping and intimate interaction between titania and silica were responsible for the increase of photoactivity.