title: Photocatalytic degradation of gaseous toluene with multiphase Ti(x)Zr(1-x)O2 synthesized via co-precipitation route.
abstract: In the present work, the multiphase Ti(x)Zr(1-x)O2 particles containing cubic-phase ZrO2 were fabricated via co-precipitation route. The mole ratios of Ti and Zr elements were controlled by three levels: Ti/Zr=7/3 (maximum), Ti/Zr=5/5 (medium), and Ti/Zr=3/7 (minimum). The materials prepared were characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS) and photoluminescence (PL) spectra. For the maximum usage of solar power with fabricated catalysts, elimination of gaseous toluene was chosen as a model to evaluate the performances under visible light. The results indicated that the degradation efficiency of toluene was about 80% after 6 h reaction using Ti(0.3)Zr(0.7)O2 as the photocatalyst. On the other hand, the multiphase Ti(x)Zr(1-x)O2 (x=0.7 or 0.5) photocatalysts showed significant enhancement in the activity, compared with the commercial TiO2 (Degussa P25). The enhanced performances of Ti(x)Zr(1-x)O2 might be attributed to the lower charge recombination rate of photoinduced electron-hole pairs. In addition, some intermediates (the benzaldehyde and benzoic acid) and final product (CO2) adsorbed on the surface of the particles were also detected by using in situ Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (MOE), School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China; State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China.
authors.forename: Baojun
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (MOE), School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China; State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China; Department of Chemical Engineering, Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia. Electronic address: xyli@dlut.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Xinyong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (MOE), School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China; State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China.
authors.forename: Qidong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (MOE), School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China; State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ke
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering (MOE), School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China; State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia. Electronic address: shaomin.liu@curtin.edu.au.
authors.forename: Shaomin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia.
authors.forename: Moses
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tadé
keywords: In situ Fourier transform infrared (FTIR); Multiphase Ti(x)Zr(1−)(x)O(2); Photocatalysis; Toluene degradation