Thermo-optical characterization of Cu- and Zr-modified TiO$_2$ photocatalysts by beam deflection spectrometry

Abdelhamid, Mahmoud (author), Korte, Dorota (author), Cabrera, Humberto (author), Pliekhova, Olena (author), Ebrahimpour, Zeinab (author), Lavrenčič Štangar, Urška (author), Franko, Mladen (author)

Cu/Zr-modified TiO$_2$ photocatalysts were prepared in the form of nanopowders and characterized by photothermal spectrometry, UV–Vis spectrophotometry and X-ray diffraction (XRD) to investigate the effect of Cu/Zr content on their thermo-optical and transport properties. Adding Cu (0.05%) caused a change in the light absorption range limit, which reduced from 3.25 eV for pure TiO$_2$ to 2.85 eV for Cu-modified TiO$_2$. The decrease in energy band gap was accompanied by a 19.5% decrease in the charge carrier lifetime, which is not favorable for photocatalysis. The decrease in charge carrier lifetime can be minimized by additional modification of TiO$_2$ with Zr (1%), which showed insignificant effects on the energy band gap of the investigated materials. Furthermore, modification of TiO$_2$ with Zr affected the material’s structure and increased its specific surface area, which improved the adsorption of degraded compounds as well as the absorption of light. Altogether, these effects resulted in higher photocatalytic degradation rate constants of the investigated TiO$_2$-based photocatalyst. It was also found that modification of TiO$_2$ with Cu and/or Zr increases both the material’s thermal diffusivity and conductivity due to changes in the band gap and structure of material. Beam deflection spectrometry (BDS) has demonstrated high potential in materials’ characterization which stems from its high sensitivity and precision.

• Language: English
• Keywords: photocatalysts, TiO$_2$, Cu/Zr, photodegradation, material characterization, photothermal spectrometry
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FKKT - Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2021
• Number of pages: 15 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 11, iss. 22, art. 10937
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-136366
• UDC: 543.2/.9
• ISSN on article: 2076-3417
• DOI: 10.3390/app112210937
• COBISS.SI-ID: 86177027
• Publication date in RUL: 26.04.2022

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Applied sciences
• Shortened title: Appl. sci.
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2076-3417
• COBISS.SI-ID: 522979353

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• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.
• Licensing start date: 19.11.2021