title: Investigation of the influence of vanadium, iron and nickel dopants on the morphology, and crystal structure and photocatalytic properties of titanium dioxide based nanopowders.
abstract: Photoactive V, Fe and Ni doped TiO2 (M-TiO2) nanopowders were synthesized by a modified two-step sol-gel process in the absence of additives. Titanium oxychloride, which is a rarely-used TiO2 precursor was used to yield M-TiO2 photocatalysts with preferential photochemical performance in the presence of natural solar irradiation. The obtained samples were calcined at different calcination temperatures ranging from 450 to 800°C to evaluate the influence of the sintering on the physicochemical properties. The properties of the obtained samples were examined by XRF, XRD, Raman spectroscopy, UV-visible DRS, XPS, nitrogen gas physisorption studies, SEM-EDAX and HRTEM analyses. Structural characterization of the samples revealed the incorporation of these transition metal element into TiO2. It was also depicted that the morphology, crystal structure, optical and photochemical properties of the obtained samples were largely dependent on the calcination temperature and the type of dopant used during the preparation process. The photochemical performance of the samples was investigated in the photodegradation of methylene blue in the presence of natural sunlight. The experimental results indicated that the VT600 sample possessed the highest activity due to its superior properties. This study provides a systematic preparation and selection of the precursor, dopant and calcination temperature that are suitable for the formation of TiO2-based heterogeneous photocatalysts with appealing morphology, crystal structure, optical and photochemical properties for myriad of applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Hanyang University, 1271 Sa 3-dong, Sangnok-gu, Ansan-si, Gyeonggi-do 426-791, Republic of Korea; Department of Chemistry, Mkwawa College, University of Dar es Salaam, Iringa, United Republic of Tanzania.
authors.forename: Godlisten N
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Shao
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Hanyang University, 1271 Sa 3-dong, Sangnok-gu, Ansan-si, Gyeonggi-do 426-791, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Sun-Jeong
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Jeon
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Evironmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 1271 Sa 3-dong, Sangnok-gu, Ansan-si, Gyeonggi-do 426-791, Republic of Korea; Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Gujrat, HH Campus, Punjab, Pakistan.
authors.forename: M Salman
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Haider
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Hanyang University, 1271 Sa 3-dong, Sangnok-gu, Ansan-si, Gyeonggi-do 426-791, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Nadir
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Abbass
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Hanyang University, 1271 Sa 3-dong, Sangnok-gu, Ansan-si, Gyeonggi-do 426-791, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: khtaik@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Hee Taik
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Kim
keywords: Calcination; Heterogeneous photocatalysis; Sol-gel process; TiOCl(2)