TiO2 nanospheres/AgVO3 quantum dots composite with enhanced visible light photocatalytic antibacterial activity

TiO2 nanospheres/AgVO3 quantum dots composite was synthesized by a facile in situ ultrasonic reaction route and systematically characterized by XRD, XPS, FESEM, TEM, UV-DRS and PL. The results demonstrated that AgVO3 QDs were successfully anchored on the surface of TiO2 nanospheres. The TiO2/AgVO3 composite displayed a high and stable visible light photocatalytic inactivation activity toward E. coll., which mainly derived from the synergetic effect between TiO2 and AgVO3, including a good distribution of AgVO3 QDs on the surface of TiO2 nanospheres, increased visible light harvesting and improved separation efficiency of photoinduced electron-hole pairs. Our study revealed that TiO2/AgVO3 composite could be a promising candidate photocatalyst for treating microbial-contaminated water. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.