The preparation of coupled WO3/TiO2 photocatalyst by ball milling

The coupled photocatalyst WO3/TiO2 is prepared by ball milling by doping WO3 into TiO2 and using H2O solution as disperser. The coupled photocatalyst WO3/TiO2 is characterized by UV-VIS diffuse reflection spectrum, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that the optimum percentage of WO3 doped is 3% and that the photocatalytic activity of the coupled WO3/TiO2 photocatalyst is much higher than that of TiO2 and WO3-TiO2 with no ball milling. Compared with TiO2, the photoexcited wavelength range of the WO3/TiO2 photocatalyst red-shifts about 50 nm, and the light absorption intensity is also improved. The crystal phase of TiO2 is not changed and new crystal phases are not found during the process of ball milling. WO3 and TiO2 coupled highly, forming the WO3/TiO2 photocatalyst. The increased photocatalytic activity of the coupled photocatalyst may be attributed to the enhance charge separation efficiency and the extend wavelength range of photoexcitation. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.