Synthesis of MoS2/SrTiO3 composite materials for enhanced photocatalytic activity under UV irradiation

Abstract

A novel composite material, MoS₂/SrTiO₃, has been successfully prepared via a two-step simple hydrothermal method. The photocatalytic performance of MoS₂/SrTiO₃ composites in the degradation of MO organic dyes under UV-light irradiation and the effect of the loading amount of MoS₂ were investigated. For the first time, it was found that the as-prepared composites showed a high degradation rate and that the photocatalytic activity over pure SrTiO₃ could be significantly enhanced by loading MoS₂. Importantly, there is an optimal loading amount of MoS₂ on the SrTiO₃ in terms of degradation rate. In addition, the MoS₂/SrTiO₃ composite material with 0.05 wt% of MoS₂ showed the best photocatalytic activity, with a degradation rate as high as 99.81% after 60 min irradiation time. The promoting effect caused by MoS₂ can be due to the suppression of recombination between electrons and holes. This study demonstrates high potential for the development of environmentally friendly, cheap non-noble metal composite materials for photocatalytic degradation.