PCBM supported on titania used as an efficient photocatalyst under visible light

Abstract

A [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM)-modified TiO₂ photocatalyst was prepared by a simple facile chemisorption approach. The photocatalytic activity was obtained for the degradation of the nonbiodegradable azo dye methylene blue (MB) under visible light irradiation and the as-prepared samples showed excellent photocatalytic activity. After being modified by PCBM, the optimum synergistic effect was found at a weight ratio of 2.4 wt% (PCBM/TiO₂) and the photocatalytic activities increased about 3.72 and 2.89 times for the degradation of MB under visible light irradiation compared to pure PCBM and TiO₂, respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of PCBM-modified TiO₂ comes from the high separation efficiency of a photoinduced electron–hole pair which is produced by the interaction of TiO₂ and PCBM with the conjugated π-system.