Photocatalytic behaviors and structural characterization of nanocrystalline Fe-doped TiO2 synthesized by mechanical alloying

Nanocrystalline Fe-doped TiO2 powders were synthesized by mechanical alloying (MA) with varying Fe contents from 0 up to 4.8 wt.% to shift the absorption threshold into the visible light region. The photocatalytic feasibility of the Fe-doped TiO2 powder was evaluated by quantifying the visible light absorption capacity using ultraviolet and visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy. Effects of Fe additions on the crystal structures and the morphologies of the Fe-doped powders were also investigated as a function of the doping content using transmission electron microscopy-electron diffraction pattern (TEM-EDP), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDAX) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The UV-Vis study showed that the UV absorption for the Fe-doped powder moved to a longer wavelength (red shift) and the photoefficiency was enhanced. Based on the analysis of the photoluminescence spectra, the red shift was believed to be induced by localizing the dopant level near the valence band of TiO2. The UV-Vis absorption depended on the Fe concentration. TEM-EDP and XRD investigations showed that the Fe-doped powder had a rutile phase in which the added Fe atoms were dissolved. The rutile phase was composed of spherical particles and chestnut bur shaped particles, resulting in a larger surface area than the spherical P-25 powder. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.