Fabrication and photocatalytic activity of TiO2 nanofiber membrane

Titanium dioxide is one of the best semiconductor photocatalysts available for photocatalysis. In this paper, titanium dioxide nanofiber membranes are prepared by post-anneal-assisted electrospinning process. The obtained membrane is composed of anatase titanium dioxide continuous and porous nanofibers with diameters ranging from 65 to 115 run. An optimized annealing scheme is determined. Photocatalytic measurements show that the photocatalytic efficiency of the anatase TiO2 nanofiber membrane is 72%, which is highly superior to that of the anatase TiO2 thin film (44%). It is believed that the large specific surface area intensively enhances the photocatalytic reactions and the good shape retention might be favorable for recuperability and practicality. The potential applications for environmental purification are discussed. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.