Synthesis of Titanium Dioxide via Surfactant-Assisted Microwave Method for Photocatalytic and Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells Applications

Abstract

In this study, titania nanoparticles were obtained using the microwave-assisted technique. Moreover, different surfactants (PEG (Mn = 400), Pluronic P123 and Triton X−100) were used during the synthesis in order to determine their impact on the crystallinity and morphology of the final products. Subsequently, techniques such as XRD, SEM and TEM (performed in high contrast and high-resolution mode), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), low temperature N2 sorption (BET model), FTIR and TGA were carried out. Based on the crystallinity analysis of the obtained materials, it was established that the addition of surfactants results in greater (PEG and Triton X−100) or smaller (Pluronic P123) average crystallite size. The main purpose of this study was to use the synthesized nanomaterials in the photodegradation process (in the UV light range) of the model organic pollutants – phenol (20 mg/L) and etodolac (15 mg/L). Furthermore, it was also pointed out that the dye-sensitized solar cells can be a second application for the synthesized titania nanomaterials. The photo-oxidation and photovoltaic tests have shown that the titanium dioxide obtained using the surfactant-assisted microwave method is characterized not only by better photodegradation efficiency of phenol and etodolac, but also by higher photocurrent density compared to the reference titania samples—the pristine TiO2 and commercial P25.

Enhanced Fe-TiO2 Solar Photocatalysts on Porous Platforms for Water Purification

“…In order to produce improved materials with high surface area, several studies have focused on the synthesis of controlled porous TiO 2 -based materials with the addition of surfactants for the enhancement of photocatalytic activity [ 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 ]. Feng et al, reported enhanced metal-ion-doped TiO 2 photocatalysts under solar light with a large BET (Brunauer–Emmett–Teller) surface area, synthesized by microwave irradiation, through the use of the surfactant P123 [ 59 ].…”

The TiO2-ZnO Systems with Multifunctional Applications in Photoactive Processes—Efficient Photocatalyst under UV-LED Light and Electrode Materials in DSSCs

“…Therefore, HR-TEM imaging focused mainly on TiO 2 particles for which the synthesis conditions have a determining the influence on the crystal growth. In HR-TEM and FFT images ( Figure 5 ), TiO 2 particles in TiO 2 -ZnO systems are correctly oriented with respect to the impinging electron beam showing lattice fringes 0.23 nm apart (d 004 = 0.2378 nm) [ 25 ]. Thus, they correspond to {001} surfaces.…”

“…The already described method has been used to prepare the viscous pastes of TiO 2 -ZnO systems [ 24 , 25 ]. The pastes containing selected TiO 2 -ZnO materials, terpineol, and ethylcellulose have been used to prepare working electrodes by spreading the pastes on fluorine-doped tin oxide glass (FTO) substrates using the “ doctor-blade ” technique.…”

“…The electrodes cooled down to approximately 80 °C, then immersed in the 10 −4 M ethanolic solution of N3 sensitizing dye, and were kept 24 h in the dark. The dye loading has been determined using our previously published procedure [ 25 ]. In the meantime, the Pt coated FTO counter electrodes have also been prepared using the procedure described by us elsewhere [ 26 ].…”

Application of Spinel and Hexagonal Ferrites in Heterogeneous Photocatalysis

“…[4]. In order to be able to control the above parameters, it is necessary not only to apply innovative synthesis techniques (e.g., microwave route [110]) but also to use morphology-determining agents (e.g., hydrofluoric acid [111]). Despite the undoubted advantages resulting from the high photoactivity of titania, researchers are still looking for novel materials with similar or better parameters than TiO 2 .…”