Thermally stable ordered mesoporous CeO2/TiO2 visible-light photocatalysts

Abstract

Thermally stable, ordered mesoporous CeO₂/TiO₂ (Ce/Ti molar ratio = 0.05) visible-light photocatalysts have been fabricated by the evaporation-induced self-assembly method. Introducing highly dispersed CeO₂ species into the mesoporous TiO₂ framework can effectively extend the response of TiO₂ to the visible-light region and improve the thermal stability of the mesoporous TiO₂. The products calcined at 500 °C exhibit superior photocatalytic performance in the photochemical degradation of methylene blue under visible-light irradiation. The products are characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman, photo-luminescent (PL), and ultraviolet–visible-light reflectance (UV-vis) spectroscopy. The relationship between the physicochemical property and the photocatalytic performance of the as-prepared samples is discussed.