Preparation and visible-light photocatalyst activity of nanometric-sized TiO2-xNy powders from a two-microemulsion process

Abstract

Nanometric-sized nitrogen-doped titanium oxide (TiO2-xNy) powders were synthesized by the two-microemulsion technology. The dried precursor precipitate was characterized by differential thermal analysis/thermogravimetric analysis, Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Brunauer-Emmet-Teller, and x-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS), and the mechanisms for the evolution of TiO2-xNy powders in this process were proposed and discussed in the context of the microstructure. It shows that a higher pH value solution results in obtaining a small size and much more homogeneous TiO2-xNy powder after calcinations. The powder prepared from a solution of pH 10–11 and calcined at 500 °C has a particle size of ∼4–6 nm with a specific surface area of 160 m2/g and exhibits a pure phase of anatase containing ∼5 mol% of N evidenced by XPS. However, the nanometric-sized TiO2-xNy powder shows the photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue solution effectively by exposing the powders in aqueous solution under visible light.