Facile synthesis of N-doped TiO2 nanosheets with exposed (001) facets for enhancing photocatalytic activity

Abstract

Nitrogen-doped TiO2 with exposed (001) facets was prepared by hydrothermal method using TiN as precursor. The effect of the proportion of HF and HCl on the crystal structure, morphology, optical properties and photocatalytic activity were investigated. The photocatalytic performance of N-doped TiO2 nanosheets was evaluated by the degradation of methylene blue (MB) under xenon lamp light source. The results showed that TiO2 demonstrated nanorod structure with a single rutile phase in the absence of HF while anatase TiO2 exhibited nanosheet structure with exposed (001) facets in the presence of HF. With the increase of HF addition, the degradation rate of the N-doped TiO2 decreased gradually. When the addition of HF was 1 mL, TiO2 showed the highest photocatalytic activity, which was mainly attributed to the large specific surface area and optimal percentage of exposed (001) facets.