Improved Visible Light Photocatalytic Activity for TiO2 Nanomaterials by Codoping with Zinc and Sulfur

Abstract EN

S/Zn codoped TiO2 nanomaterials were synthesized by a sol-gel method.

X-ray diffraction, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, photoluminescence spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to characterize the morphology, structure, and optical properties of the prepared samples.

The introduction of Zn and S resulted in significant red shift of absorption edge for TiO2-based nanomaterials.

The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by degrading reactive brilliant red X-3B solution under simulated sunlight irradiation.

The results showed S/Zn codoped TiO2 exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than pure TiO2 and commercial P25, due to the photosynergistic effect of obvious visible light absorption, efficient separation of photoinduced charge carriers, and large surface area.

Moreover, the content of Zn and S in the composites played important roles in photocatalytic activity of TiO2-based nanomaterials.