Synchronical pollutant degradation and H2 production on a Ti3+-doped TiO2 visible photocatalyst with dominant (001) facets

In situ Ti3+-doped TiO2 crystal in mesoporous nanosheets with dominant (0 0 I) facets was prepared by supercritical treatment of the precursor obtained from sol-gel hydrolysis of mixed Ti(n-OC4H9)(4) and TiF4. This photocatalyst exhibited high activity in synchronical pollutant degradation and water splitting to produce H-2 under visible light irradiation owing to synergistic promoting effects. On one hand, the narrowed energy band gap resulted from Ti3+-doping and the high surface area enhanced light harvest and reactant adsorption. On the other hand, the high crystallization degree accelerated electron transfer and thus, inhibited photoelectron-hole recombination. Furthermore, the exposed (0 0 1) facets with high surface energy favored the activation of reactant molecules. The photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants promoted the H-2 production by consuming photogenerated holes, which inhibited their recombination with photoelectrons used for reducing H+ during water splitting. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.