Nanostructures and physicochemical properties of Pt nanoparticle-loaded titania nanotubes synthesized by photoreduction method

Abstract

Titania nanotubes (TNTs) were synthesized by a low-temperature chemical processing method and then hybridized with Pt nanoparticles (NPs) by a UV-light-induced photoreduction method using H2PtCl6. Optical band gap energy was slightly increased by the Pt NPs loading. Methylene blue (MB) removal test revealed that the both pure and Pt-loaded TNTs eliminated the MB under dark and UV-light irradiation conditions, showing the molecular adsorption property was kept even after the Pt loading. Ultraviolet (UV) light induced photocatalytic degradation of MB mainly underwent at the surface of TNT while Pt NPs accumulated photoinduced electron sufficiently. Pt-loaded TNTs exhibited higher performance of photocatalytic than non-Ptloaded TNTs at the early stage of photodegradation of MB. It indicated that the Pt NPs worked well as co-catalysts with the TNTs. These results suggest that the present nanocomposite is suitable for elimination of molecules through the combination of two functions as molecular adsorption and photocatalytic reaction. © 2012 The Ceramic Society of Japan.