Composite nanofibers containing nanometric TiO2 particles and multiwalled carbon nanotubes dispersed in poly(acrylonitrile) (PAN) were prepared by the electrospinning technique. The structure and quality of the precursor dispersions were evaluated by cryo-transmission electron microscopy. The fabricated nanofibers, the diameters of which were in the 20-200 nm range, contained well-oriented nanotubes and spherical TiO2 nanoparticles in close proximity. Such nanofibers are under investigation as new photocatalytic reactor elements.

Composite poly(acrylonitrile) nanofibers containing nanometric TiO 2 particles and multiwalled carbon nanotubes have been prepared by the electrospinning technique. The photocatalytic activity of the composite fibers was measured in the absence of contaminants as well as with acetone, or with the dye rhodamine 6G. TEM images, as well as FTIR measurements, showed that the presence of carbon nanotubes reduced the extent by which the polymeric matrix was degraded upon exposure to UV light. At the same time, no adverse effect on the ability of the photocatalyst to degrade organic molecules was observed, and in the case of rhodamine 6G, an enhanced degradation rate was observed. These apparently contradicting results are explained by a mechanism that is based on the transport of photoinduced charge carriers from the photocatalyst particles to the carbon nanotubes, which may induce a variety of effects, depending on the degradation mechanism and reaction loci.