Fe-quinoline complexes sensitized Si-doped TiO2 with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity

Si-doped TiO2 nanoparticles were prepared via a solvothermal method and were sensitized by the Fequinoline complexes (HQSI) to improve the visible light photocatalytic activity. The used HQSI had a narrow band gap of 1.54 eV and showed strong visible light absorption. HQSI can transfer photoelectrons to the conduction band of TiO2 and be regenerated by the electron injection from Rhodamine B. After sensitization, the Si-doped TiO2 exhibited stronger absorption in the visible region and showed higher visible-light photocatalytic activity for the degradation of Rhodamine B in an aqueous solution than the simple Si-doped TiO2 and sensitized commercial TiO2. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.