Efficient Degradation of Toxic Organic Pollutants with Ni₂O₃/TiO_2-xB_x under Visible Irradiation

Abstract

To promote efficient use of solar energy, many studies have focused on the modification of TiO2 to extend its spectral response to visible region. Here we report a combined modification of TiO2 by two components: the nonmetal element boron and the metal oxide Ni2O3. The photocatalyst presents high photocatalytic activity in the visible region, which can efficiently degrade and mineralize toxic organic pollutants such as trichlorophenol (TCP), 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP), and sodium benzoate. The dechlorination and mineralization results indicate the photocatalytic pathway via visible light excitation. The study demonstrates that the modification of TiO2 both to extend its spectral response to the visible region and to improve its catalytic efficiency can be achieved by doping with boron, a nonmetal, and Ni2O3, a metal oxide.

Flame-Sprayed Pure and Ce-Doped TiO2 Photocatalysts

“…The UV-Vis Spectroscopy measurement was performed at Lambda 950 at the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL-CFN). Using the Kubelka-Munk function, the band gap of the samples can be calculated by the absorption edge position according to the formula: Eg = 1240/λ, in which λ is the wavelength of the absorption edge in the spectra [23]. Figure 7 shows the UV spectra of TiO2 and Ce-TiO2.…”

Ag/AgBr/TiO2 Visible Light Photocatalyst for Destruction of Azodyes and Bacteria

“…[1][2][3][4][5] The main drawbacks of low quantum yields and the lack of visible light utilization, however, hinder its practical application. To handle these problems, numerous studies have recently been performed to enhance the photocatalytic efficiency and visible light utilization of TiO 2 , which include impurity doping, [6][7][8][9] metallization, [10][11][12][13][14][15] and sensitization. 16,17 According to these published works, the deposition of the metal on visible light catalysts highly improved its photoefficiency through the Schottky barrier CB electron trapping and consequent longer electron-hole pair lifetimes.…”

Visible-Light-Induced Photocatalytic Degradation of Azodyes in Aqueous AgI/TiO2 Dispersion

“…One obstacle to its effective utilization is the relatively inefficient use of solar energy; less than 5% (UV light) of the sunlight is absorbed by this photocatalyst. To handle this problem, new photocatalysts capable of using visible light have been developed, including the impurity doping (7,8) and sensitization (9) of TiO2, and new visible-light-induced photocatalysts, such as PbBi2Nb2O9 (10) and CaBi2O4 (11). However, the variety of visible-light photocatalysts is still very limited.…”