Preparation and Characterization of Visible Light-Sensitive N-doped TiO2 Using a Sol-gel Method

Nitrogen-doped titanium dioxide (N-doped $TiO_2$) is attracting continuously increasing attention as a material for environmental photocatalysis. The N-atoms can occupy both interstitial and substitutional positions in the solid, with some evidence of a preference for interstitial sites. In this study, N-doped $TiO_2$ is prepared by the sol-gel method using $NH_4OH$ and $NH_4Cl$ as N ion doping agents, and the physical and photocatalytic properties with changes in the synthesis temperature and amount of agent are analyzed. The photocatalytic activities of the N-doped $TiO_2$ samples are evaluated based on the decomposition of methylene blue (MB) under visible-light irradiation. The addition of 5 wt% $NH_4Cl$ produces the best physical properties. As per the UV-vis analysis results, the N-doped $TiO_2$ exhibits a higher visible-light activity than the undoped $TiO_2$. The wavelength of the N-doped $TiO_2$ shifts to the visible-light region up to 412 nm. In addition, this sample shows MB removal of approximately 81%, with the whiteness increasing to +97 when the synthesis temperature is $600^{\circ}C$. The coloration and phase structure of the N-doped $TiO_2$ are characterized in detail using UV-vis, CIE Lab color parameter measurements, and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD).

Sol-gel법을 이용한 백색도가 높은 가시광 응답형 N-doped TiO2 제조 및 특성 평가 연구