Synthesis and characterization of Ag doped TiO 2 heterojunction films and their photocatalytic performances
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Date
2016
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Abstract
In this study, undoped and silver (Ag) doped titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) films were successfully synthesized by sol-gel spin coating technique on the Si substrates. Photocatalytic activities of the TiO 2 films with different Ag content were investigated for the degradation of methylene blue (MB) under UV light irradiation. The crystal phase structure, surface morphology, chemical and optical properties of Ag-doped TiO 2 films were characterized using an X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV–vis spectrophotometer, and FTIR spectrophotometer. The results showed that the Ag-doped TiO 2 films calcined at 500 °C had the crystalline anatase phases and the surface morphologies with some cracks. Ag substitution into TiO 2 matrix enhanced the photocatalytic activity of TiO 2 films under UV light irradiation as compared to the undoped TiO 2 film. Furthermore, the results indicated that the 0.7% Ag doped TiO 2 film exhibited a superior photocatalytic activity than that of undoped and other Ag-doped TiO 2 films. This study demonstrated the potential of an application of Ag doped films to efficiently treat dissolved organic contaminants in water. © 2016 Elsevier B.V.