TiO2/graphene composite from thermal reaction of graphene oxide and its photocatalytic activity in visible light

Abstract

In this study, the P25 TiO2 nanoparticles and graphene sheets (GSs) composite were prepared from a facile thermal reaction of graphene oxide. Its microstructures and photocatalytic properties were characterized and measured using X-ray diffraction (XRD), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific area analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), FT-IR spectra, and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. Compared with pure P25 nanoparticles, the results reveal that (1) there is a red shift about 20 nm in the absorption edge of the P25/graphene composite; (2) the photocurrent of the composite is about 15 times higher than that of pure P25; (3) the visible light photocatalytic activity of the composite is enhanced greatly on decomposition of methylene blue (MB). The photocatalytic mechanism of the P25/graphene composite is also discussed. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.