Preparation of TiO?/Carbon Nanotubes/Reduced Graphene Oxide Composites with Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity for the Degradation of Rhodamine B.

ABSTRACT: In this report, ternary titanium dioxide (TiO?)/carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/reduced graphene oxide (rGO) composites were fabricated by a facile and environmentally friendly one-pot solvethermal method for the removal of Rhodamine B (RhB). Its structures were represented by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Raman spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The photocatalytic performance was tested by the degradation efficiency of RhB under UV-vis light irradiation. The experimental results indicated that photocatalytic activity improved as the ratio of CNTs:TiO? ranged from 0.5% to 3% but reduced when the content increased to 5% and 10%, and the TiO?/CNTs/rGO-3% composites showed superior photocatalytic activity compared with the binary ones (i.e., TiO?/CNTs, TiO?/rGO) and pristine TiO?. The rate constant k of the pseudo first-order reaction was about 1.5 times that of TiO?. The improved photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the addition of rGO and CNTs, which reduced the recombination of photo-induced electron-hole pairs, and the fact that CNTs and rGO, with a high specific surface area and high adsorption ability to efficiently adsorb O?, H?O and organics, can increase the hydroxyl content of the photocatalyst surface.

SUBMITTER: Huang Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6027058 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature