Photocatalytic activity and adsorption performance of p-CuBi2O4/n-TiO2 p-n heterojunction composites prepared by in situ sol-gel coating method

The CuBi2O4/TiO2 p-n heterojunction composites were obtained by in situ sol-gel coating process using prepared CuBi2O4 powders and titania colloid. The obtained CuBi2O4/TiO2 composites were characterized by XRD, SEM, BET and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. Their photocatalytic and adsorption activities were evaluated by degradations and adsorptions of methyl orange and congo red. Results showed that some compositions of prepared p-n heterojunction composites exhibited much higher photocatalytic activity and absorption performance than pure CuBi2O4 or pure TiO2, demonstrating that the formation of p-n heterojunction between the two materials plays an important role in improving photocatalytic activity and adsorption performance.