Spectra analysis and O_2 evolution for TiO_2 photocatalyst compounded with indirect transition semiconductors

The photo absorbing, photo transmitting and photoluminescence performances of WiO2 photocatalysts compounded with V2O5 or WO3 were investigated by UV-Vis spectra, transmitting spectra, and PL spectra, respectively. The energy band structures of TiO2 photocatalysts were analyzed. The photocatalytic activities of the TiO2 photocatalysts were investigated by splitting of water for 02 evolution. The results indicate that the band gaps of WO3 and V205 are about 2.8 and 2.14 eV, respectively, and the band gap of rutile TiO2 is about 3.08 eV. Speeds of water splitting for 2%WO3-TiO2 and 8%V2O5-TiO2 photocatalysts are 420 and 110 μmol/（L.h）, respectively, under UV light irradiation. V2O5 and WO3 compounded with suitable concentration can improve the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 with Fe3＋ as electron acceptor.

First-principles study on anatase TiO_2 codoped with nitrogen and praseodymium

The crystal structures, electronic structures and optical properties of nitrogen or/and praseodymium doped anatase TiO2 were calculated by first principles with the plane-wave ultrasoft pseudopotential method based on density functional theory. Highly efficient visible-light-induced nitrogen or/and praseodymium doped anatase TiO2 nanocrystal photocatalyst were synthesized by a microwave chemical method. The calculated results show that the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 can be enhanced by N doping or Pr doping, and can be further enhanced by N＋Pr codoping. The band gap change of the codoping TiO2 is more obvious than that of the single ion doping, which results in the red shift of the optical absorption edges. The results are of great significance for the understanding and further development of visible-light response high activity modified TiO2 photocatalyst. The photocatalytic activity of the samples for methyl blue degradation was investigated under the irradiation of fluorescent light. The experimental results show that the codoping TiO2 photocatalytic activity is obviously higher than that of the single ion doping. The experimental results accord with the calculated results.

Photocatalytic Activity of Porous Magnesium Oxychloride Cement Combined with AC/TiO2 Composites

As a decorative material, magnesium oxychloride cement was used as a photocatalyst supporter to purify the pollutants indoors. Due to excellent adsorption properties of activated carbon（AC）, the photocatalytic composties, TiO2/AC, were prepared and introduced into the porous magnesium oxychloride cement（PMOC） substrate to composite a sort of photocatalytic cementitious material（PCM）. The optimal composite processes were assessed by gas chromatograph, using toluene as the target. By comparing the perspective of toluene purification and thorough decomposition, it can be found that the optimal mass ratio for TiO2/AC composites is 4/25, and the heat treatment to TiO2/AC sample at 350 ℃ can play the optimal synergetic role of adsorbents in photocatalytic process. The synergistic effect of TiO2, AC and magnesium oxychloride cement（MOC） was also evaluated by gas chromatograph. One-take molding process was adopted to introduce the TiO2/AC into PMOC substrate, and its optimal mass fraction was 4 wt%, while the appropriate density of substrate was 0.35 g/cm3. Toluene degradation showed that the prepared PCM can degrade pollutants efficiently. The appropriate treatment process of TiO2/AC, mass of TiO2/AC, substrate density, and stable pore structure should be coordinated to maximize the adsorption-photodegradation performance. The combination of photocatalytic materials, adsorbents, and building materials provided a new idea for the application of photocatalysis.

Influence of Cu（II） on Ag（I） Recovery by Photocatalytic Reduction Method with TiO2 Suspension

Photocatalytic reduction method using TiO2 suspension for removal as well as possibly recovery of silver （Ag（I）） in the presence of Cu（II） is examined. The photocatalytic reduction was performed by batch technique in a closed reactor equipped with UV lamp. The concentration of unreduced Ag（I） was analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometry method. The research results indicate that Ag（I） in the solution can be removed and recovered effectively as silver metal Ag（0） deposited on the surface of TiO2 for photocatalytic reduction. In addition, the presence of Cu（II） ion with increasing concentration leads to a proportional decline in Ag（I） photoreduction due to the prominent competition in the adsorption on the surface of TiO2. The effectiveness of Ag（I） ion photoreduction in the presence of Cu（II） ion is strongly influenced by solution pH and the highest photoreduction is obtained at pH 5 - 8, which is related with the speciation ofAg（I）, TiO2 surface as well as Cu（II） in the solution.

Optimization of the operating conditions in a TiO_2/Fe_3O_4-SiO_2 photocatalytic reactor for the treatment of industrial wastewater containing Procion Red MX-5B

According to the design principle of the central composite experimental,the method of response surface analysis with three factors and three levels was adopted based on one factor test.A second-order quadratic equation for photocatalysis of Procion Red MX-5B was built.Response surface and contour were graphed with the decoloration rate of Procion Red MX-5B as the response value.Based on the analysis of the response surface plots and their corresponding contour plots,effects of pH value,irradiation time and catalyst loading were explored.By using this new method,the optimum decoloration condition was obtained as follows:pH value,1.3;irradiation time,49.9 min;catalyst loading,0.57 g/L.In the optimization,R-Squared and Adj R-Squared correlation coefficients for quadratic model were evaluated quite satisfactorily as 0.9310 and 0.8620,respectively.Under the optimum conditions established,the performance of 99.47% for color removal was experimentally reached.It was found that all factors considered have an important effect on the decolorization efficiency of Procion Red MX-5B.By the ANOVA analysis and model confirmation the optimal solution obtained using RSM was experimentally validated and credible with preferable instructional ability for experiments.

Fe/C Modified TiO_2 Photocatalyst and Photodegradation of 4-t-octylphenol

[Objective]The research aimed to study synthesis of the TiO2 photocatalyst modified by Fe/C and photodegradation of 4-t-octylphenol.[Method]Fe/C modified TiO2 photocatalyst was made by sol-gel and solvothermal synthesis methods.4-t-octylphenol as test object,photocatalytic performance of the catalyst was investigated.Influences of the Fe doping amount,catalyst amount,pH and sun-light irradiation on reaction were discussed.Moreover,catalyst performance under the condition of interfering ion existence was studied.[Result]When Fe/C doping amount was 0.6%,under the reaction condition of 25 ℃,pH =9.0,300 W mercury lamp and 1.0 g/L of catalyst amount,4-t-octylphenol concentration decreased from 1.00 to 0.02 mg/L by degradation for 100 min.Rises of pH and light intensity could improve catalyst efficiency.The existences of Na ＋,K ＋ and Ca2＋ had no effect on degradation activity of the catalyst.[Conclusion]Fe/C modified TiO2 photocatalyst had better degradation effect on environmental hormone in the sewage.

Influence and Characterization of Acidity on Fine Silicon Powder Immobilized Photocatalyst

TiO2 photocatalyst was supported with tetrabutyl titanate sol as precursor and fine silicon powder obtained from ferroalloys factory as carder to discuss the influence of pH value of gel precursor on microstructure and activity of photocatalyst in the process of synthesizing nano-TiO2 by using sol-gel method, the purpose of which is to provide fundamental data for the recycle of photocatalytic material. Under the irradiation of ultraviolet light, the photocatalytic degradation rate of methyl orange solution was used to characterize the photocatalytic activity of the sample. The specific surface area of the sample was tested by N2 desorption method, crystal form of TiO2 was analyzed by X-ray powder diffraction, and the microtopography of the sample was observed by scanning electron microscopy. The experimental results showed that the acidity of gel precursor could greatly affect the specific surface area and photocatalytic activity of the photocatalyst, and the optimum pH value of the precursor was determined as 2.0, and at this time the specific surface area of photocatalyst could reach 34.0 m^2/g. In the sample, the proporticn of anatase to rutile is 7：3, which makes l0 mg·L^-1 methyl orange solution fade after irradiation by 15W ultraviolet light for 24 h, and the degradation rate might be up to 98.1%.

Carbon nanotubes/TiO_2 nanotubes composite photocatalysts for efficient degradation of methyl orange dye

A series of carbon nanotubes/TiO2 nanotubes （CNTs/TNTs） composite photocatalysts were successfully prepared by incorporation of CNTs in HNO3 washing process. These photocatalysts were characterized by XRD, N2 physical adsorption, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, TEM and Raman spectroscopy, respectively, and their photocatalytic activities were tested by using methyl orange （MO） as a model compound. Also, the effects of amount of CNTs incorporated, calcination temperature and amount of catalyst on the photocatalytic activity of the composite photocatalyst were systematically investigated. The results show that the CNTs/TNTs composite exhibits much higher photocatalytic activity than that of the TNTs or CNTs alone.

Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity of TiO2 Nanofibers and Their Flexible Composite Films： Decomposition of Organic Dyes and Efficient H2 Generation from Ethanol-Water Mixtures

TiO2 nanofibers decorated with Pt and Pd nanoparticles have been synthesized and studied in various photocatalytic processes. Excellent photocatalytic behavior in the decomposition of organic dyes in water, degradation of organic stains on the surface of flexible freestanding cellulose/catalyst composite films and in generation of hydrogen from ethanol using both suspended and immobilized catalysts are demonstrated. The performance of the nanofiber-based TiO2 materials is competitive with and in some cases outperforms--their conventional nanoparticle-based counterparts. In all cases, Pd-decorated TiO2 nanoparticles and nanofibers proved to be more efficient than their Pt-based counterparts, which could be explained on the basis of the formation of nano-sized Schottky interfaces at the contacts between TiO2 and metal nanoparticles. The feasibility of forming cellulose/catalyst composites provides a novel way of utilizing photocatalyst materials in large-area coatings and freestanding films.

Enhancing photocatalytic performance by constructing ultrafine TiO2 nanorods/g-C3N4 nanosheets heterojunction for water treatment

Photocatalysis is considered to be a clean, green and efficient method to purify water. In this report, we first developed a highly efficient ultrafine TiO2 nanorods/g-C3N4 nanosheets （TiO2 NR/CN NS） composites via a simple hydrothermal method. Tiny TiO2 nanorods （diameter： ～1.5 nm and length： ～8.3 nm） were first loaded in situ on the CN NS by adding graphitic carbon nitride （g-C3N4） to the reaction solution. The TiO2 NR/CN NS composites present high charge separation efficiency and broader light absorbance than P25 TiO2. Furthermore, we illustrate that the TiO2 NR/CN NS catalyst possesses high performance for the photocatalytic degradation of the common and stubborn pollutants in water, such as the rhodamine B （RhB） dye and phenol. Under visible light （λ 〉 420 nm） irradiation, the apparent rate of the TiO2 NR/CN NR is 172 and 41 times higher than that of the P25 TiO2 and TiO2 NR, respectively. Additionally, we speculated that the heterojunction formed between TiO2 NR and CN NS, which is the basis for the experiments we have designed and the corresponding results. We demonstrated that reactive oxidative species such as superoxide anion radical and holes play critical roles in the degradation, and the hydroxyl radical contributes nothing to the degradation.

CeO_2-TiO_2 as a visible light active catalyst for the photoreduction of CO_2 to methanol

The performance of CeO2-TiO2 photocatalyst for the photocatalytic reduction of CO2 into methanol was studied under visible light irradiation. The as-prepared catalysts were characterized for their structural, textural and optical properties using X-ray diffraction（XRD）, field emission scanning electron microscopy（FESEM）, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy（XPS）, nitrogen physisorption analysis, UV-vis spectroscopy and photoluminescence（PL） spectroscopy. The characterization results indicated that the presence of CeO2 stabilized the anatase phase of TiO2, decreased its crystallite size, increased the surface area, reduced the band gap energy and lowered the rate of electron-hole pair recombination. The CeO2-TiO2 photocatalyst showed an increased methanol yield of 18.6 μmol/g under visible light irradiation, compared to the bare TiO2（6.0 μmol/g）.

Highly efficient Zr doped-TiO_2/glass fiber photocatalyst and its performance in formaldehyde removal under visible light

Zr-doped-TiO2 loaded glass fiber（ZT/GF） composite photocatalysts with different Zr/Ti ratios were prepared with a sol–gel process. Zr4＋can replace Ti4＋in the TiO2 lattice, which is conducive to forming the anatase phase and reducing the calcination temperature. The glass fiber carrier was responsible for better dispersion and loading of Zr-doped-TiO2 particles, improving the applicability of the Zr-doped-TiO2. The ZT/GF photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction（XRD）, scanning electron microscope（SEM）, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy（FT-IR）, ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy（UV–vis） and Barrett–Joyner–Halenda（BJH）. The performance of photocatalysts with different loading was evaluated in formaldehyde degradation under visible light at room temperature. ZT/GF0.2exhibited the highest activity, with a formaldehyde removal rate as high as 95.14% being observed, which is better than that of the photocatalyst particles alone. The stability of the catalyst was also tested, and ZT/GF exhibited excellent catalytic performance with 94.38%removal efficiency, even after seven uses.

Fabrication of Bi_2O_3/TiO_2nanocomposites and their applications to the degradation of pollutants in air and water under visible-light

A nanoheterojunction composite photocatalyst Bi2O3/TiO2 working under visible-light （λ≥ 420 nm） was prepared by combining two semiconductors Bi2O3 and TiO2 varying the Bi2O3/TiO2 molar ratio. Maleic acid was employed as an organic binder to unite Bi2O3 and TiO2 nanoparticles. The SEM, TEM, XRD and diffuse reflectance spectra were utilized to characterize the prepared Bi2O3/TiO2 nanoheterojunction. The nanocomposite exhibited unusual high photocatalytic activity in decomposing 2-propanol in gas phase and phenol in aqueous phase and, evolution of CO2 under visible light irradiation while the end members exhibited low photocatalytic activity. The composite was optimized to 5 mol% Bi2O3/TiO2. The remarkable high photocatalytic efficiency originates from the unique relative energy band position of Bi2O3 and TiO2 as well as the absorption of visible light by Bi2O3.

Separation and comprehensive utilization of valuable elements in Ti-bearing electric arc furnace molten slag

A novel route to comprehensive utilization of valuable elements such as Ti, A1, Si and Mg in Ti-bearing electric arc furnace molten slag （Ti-bearing EAF slag） was proposed. The route can be expressed as a three-step process including alkali fusion, water leaching and acidolysis. Following these processes under the optimum conditions, the recovery ratios of TiO2, Al2O3, SiO2 and MgO were about 97.5, 93.5, 27.9 and 53.5%, respectively. Meanwhile, nanostructured TiO2, NaA zeolite and Mg（OH）2 fire retardant were synthesized simultaneously by using Ti-bearing EAF slag as raw materials. In addition, the photocatalytic activity of prepared nanostructured TiO2 and the adsorption property of obtained NaA zeolite were investigated. The results showed that the photodegradation efficiency of as-prepared TiO2 was 80% for rhodamine B and the adsorption efficiency of NaA zeolite was 61% for Cu2＋ under the optimum conditions.