Electrospinning and in situ nitrogen doping of TiO2/PAN nanofibers with photocatalytic activation in visible lights

Titanium dioxide (TiO2)/polyacrylonitrile (PAN) nanofibers were prepared by the electrospinning process from the mixture of titanium isopropoxide (TIIP), PAN, acetone and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). PAN was selected as the polymer template and as a nitrogen doping source to TiO2 in the subsequent annealing step. After annealed at 300 degrees C, the as-prepared mat of TiO2/PAN nanofibers showed retained nanofiber structures and high photocatalytic efficiency under visible lights in the degradation of methylene blue (MB) in water. This type of material might find wide environmental applications. (C) 2012 Published by Elsevier B.V.