Nuclear chemistry

Catalysis

Engineering

Photodegradation

Photochemistry

Materials science

Telecommunications

Computer science

Chemical engineering

Anatase

Visible spectrum

Organic chemistry

Degradation (telecommunications)

Radical

Chemistry

Photocatalysis

Optoelectronics

White light

Chemical Engineering Journal

As an emerging semiconductor different from regular white TiO2, black TiO2 has attracted intensive attention on visible light driven photocatalysis for degrading dyes, but rarely for degradation of antibiotics. In this study, black anatase-TiO2 was demonstrated to be an effective catalyst for tetracycline (TC) visible light photodegradation. 66.2% removal efficiency of TC was achieved over black TiO2 under visible light illumination, while white TiO2 and N-doped TiO2 exhibited 43.4% and 59.6% removal efficiencies, respectively. Furthermore, only ⋅O2− radicals played an important role in TC photodegradation over white TiO2, whereas both ⋅O2− and h+ were responsible for the degradation over black TiO2 and N-doped TiO2. Different from white TiO2 for visible light photocatalytic TC degradation that follows photosensitization, the visible light photodegrataion over black TiO2 is due to photoexcitation.

Excellent photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline over black anatase-TiO2 under visible light