Enhancing the rate of organic material decomposition photo catalyzed by high performance visible light activated tungsten oxide

摘要

We report a novel approach for increasing the rate of organic material decomposition photo-catalyzed by visible light activated tungsten oxide (WO_3). It was confirmed that photo-catalysis by WO_3 nano-particles fabricated by gas phase method and annealed at 600 ℃ for 1 hour achieves 30 times higher decomposition rate compared to photo-catalysis by commonly reported nitrogen doped titanium dioxides (TiO_2). The high decomposition rate in the presence of WO_3 nano-particles could be attributed to their high crystalline quality and large surface area. It was also found that the decomposition rate can further be doubled by addition of metal oxides such as zirconium oxide (ZrO_2) or TiO_2. Furthermore, it is shown that immersing WO3 nano-particles mixed with ZrO_2 or TiO_2 in Pt colloid or Ru ionic solutions achieve complete decomposition of organic material to CO_2 and H_2O. These novel methods are already in the mass production stage.