CTAB-assisted synthesis of mesoporous F-N-codoped TiO2 powders with high visible-light-driven catalytic activity and adsorption capacity

This article describes the preparation of mesoporous rod-like F-N-codoped TiO2 powder photocatalysts with anatase phase via a sol-gel route at the temperature of 373 K, using cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) as surfactant. The as-prepared photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectra (UV-vis DRS). The results showed that the photocatalysts possessed a homogeneous pore diameter and a high surface area of 106.3-160.7 m3 g-1. The increasing CTAB reactive concentration extended the visible-light absorption up to 600 nm. The F-N-codoped TiO2 powders exhibited significant higher adsorption capacity for methyl orange (MO) than that of Degussa P25 and showed more than 6 times higher visible-light-induced catalytic degradation for MO than that of P25. - Graphical abstract: The introduction of surfactant CTAB not only extended the visible light absorption of mesoporous F-N-codoped TiO2 up to 600 nm but also significantly enhanced the adsorption capacity and visible-light-induced degradation for methyl orange. Mesoporous rod-like F-N-codoped TiO2 powder photocatalysts were synthesized via a sol-gel route at low temperature of 373 K