One-step hydrothermal preparation and characterization of ZnO–TiO2 nanocomposites for photocatalytic activity

Abstract

Abstract ZnO–TiO2 nanowire composites with different Zn/Ti molar ratios were prepared by one-step hydrothermal process. The crystal structure, surface morphology and chemical state of the samples were characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM and XPS. The effect of ZnO content on the photocatalytic performance was investigated by degradation of Rhodamine B dye under xenon lamp illumination. The XRD result indicated that Zn/Ti molar ratio significantly affected the crystallinity and phase composition of ZnO–TiO2 composites. SEM images showed that ZnO nanoparticles of smaller size were dispersed on the surface of TiO2 nanowires and aggregated in the TiO2 framework. The optimal Zn/Ti molar ratio of 5% was obtained with highest photocatalytic activity, which could be attributed to the superior charge separation ability.