Enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity of mesoporous TiO2−xNx derived from the ethylenediamine-based complex

Abstract

A facile solvent evaporation induced self-assembly (SEISA) strategy was developed to synthesize mesoporous N-doped anatase TiO₂ (SE-meso-TON) using a single organic complex precursor derived in situ from titanium butoxide and ethylenediamine in ethanol solution. After the evaporation of ethanol in a fume hood and subsequent calcinations at 450 °C, the obtained N-doped TiO₂ (meso-TON) anatase was of finite crystallite size, developed porosity, large surface area (101 m² g⁻¹) and extended light absorption in the visible region. This SE-meso-TON also showed superior photocatalytic activity to the SG-meso-TON anatase prepared via sol–gel synthesis. On the basis of characterization results from XRD, XPS, N₂ adsorption–desorption and ESR, the enhanced visible-light-responsive photocatalytic activity of SE-meso-TON was assigned to its developed mesoporosity and reduced oxygen vacancies.