Visible‐Light Photocatalytic Activity of N‐Doped TiO 2 Nanotube Arrays on Acephate Degradation

• Published in: Journal of nanomaterials 2015-01, Vol.2015 (1)
• Main Authors: Zhang, Xinlei, Zhou, Juan, Gu, Yufen, Fan, Ding
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1687-4110; 1687-4129
• DOI: 10.1155/2015/527070

Highly ordered nitrogen‐doped titanium dioxide (N‐doped TiO 2 ) nanotube arrays were prepared by anodic oxidation method and then annealed in a N 2 atmosphere to obtain N‐doped TiO 2 nanotube arrays. The samples were characterized with scanning electron microscope (SEM), X‐ray powder diffraction (XRD), X‐ray photoelectron spectrum (XPS), and UV‐visible spectrophotometry (UV‐vis) spectrum. Degradation of the insecticide acephate under the visible light was used as a model to examine the visible‐light photocatalytic activity of N‐doped TiO 2 nanotube arrays. The results show that N type doping has no notable effects on the morphology and structure of TiO 2 nanotube arrays. After N type doping, the N replaces a small amount of O in TiO 2 , forming an N–Ti–O structure. This shifts the optical absorption edge and enhances absorption of the visible light. N‐doped TiO 2 nanotube arrays subjected to annealing at 500°C in N 2 atmosphere show the strongest photocatalytic activity and reach a degradation rate of 84% within 2 h.