Nanopaper based on Ag/TiO2 nanobelts heterostructure for continuous-flow photocatalytic treatment of liquid and gas phase pollutants

The Ag/TiO2 nanobelt heterostructures were prepared by the acid-assisted hydrothermal method followed by an in situ photo-reduction process. The photocatalytic activity of TiO2 nanobelts was evidently enhanced by the heterostructures between Ag nanoparticles and TiO2 nanobelts. The nanopapers based on Ag/Ti O-2 nanobelt heterostructures were fabricated via a modified paper-making process. A novel continuous photocatalytic reactor was designed, and MO removal rate of Ag/C-TiO2 nanopaper was achieved to 100% in 40 min for single layer and only in 6 min for three layers. The self-supported TiO2 nanopapers with porous structures also showed an excellent continuous photocatalytic performance for toluene gas under UV light irradiation, and the corresponding degradation rate was 69.5% in 184 min. Moreover, the Ag/TiO2 nanobelts nanopaper showed a good antibacterial effect. The multifunctional TiO2 nanopapers modified by the heterostuctures could have potential applications in the environmental and biomaterial fields. Crown Copyright (C) 2011 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.