Photocatalytic properties of porous C-doped TiO2 and Ag/C-doped TiO2 nanomaterials by eggshell membrane templating

摘要

Porous organic carbon-doped titania (C-TiO2) nanomaterials and their composites with Ag nanoparticles (Ag/C-TiO2) were synthesized by an eggshell membrane templating method, and their structural and photocatalytic properties were systematically characterized. These nanomaterials, exhibiting a macroscopic morphology of a thin film, are composed of interwoven tubes, and the tube wall consists of nanocrystals. The doped organic carbon was composed of the active carbon and carbonate species, which could form a layer around the surface of TiO2 nanoparticles, while the silver was incorporated into Ag/C-TiO2 composites as separated Ag nanoparticles. The degradation of methylene blue under visible light irradiation was employed to evaluate the photocatalytic activity of these as-prepared TiO2-based materials. Both C-TiO2 and Ag/C-TiO2 nanomaterials showed higher photocatalytic activity than pure TiO2 material–commercial Degussa P25. These results can be accounted for the coupling effect of the incorporation of carbon species and Ag nanoparticles.