• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.94-101
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• 2013

Poly(acrylonitrile) (PAN) nanofibers containing different amounts of titanium dioxide ($TiO_2$) have been prepared by electrospinning technique. Photocatalytic activity of these electrospun PAN/$TiO_2$ nanofibers and the effect of $TiO_2$ content on the photocatalytic efficiency of PAN/$TiO_2$ nanofibers have been evaluated by monitoring the photodecomposition of fluorescein dye, rhodamine B and methylene blue under UV irradiation with respect to irradiation time. Moreover, the effect of hydrogen peroxide ($H_2O_2$) on the photocatalytic behavior of PAN/$TiO_2$ nanofibers has also been investigated. The results showed that PAN/$TiO_2$ nanofibers are effective photocatalyst and their photocatalytic efficiency increases with the increase of $TiO_2$ content in the PAN/$TiO_2$ nanofibers. It is also observed that the presence of $H_2O_2$ significantly enhances the photocatalytic ability of PAN/$TiO_2$ nanofibers. The morphology and the photocatalytic behavior of the PAN/$TiO_2$ nanofibers containing different amounts of $TiO_2$ nanoparticles have been investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and UV/Visible spectroscopy, respectively.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.259-265
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• 2001

Photocatalytic degradation of Congo red was performed using various semiconductors as ZnO, CdS, rutile-$TiO_2$ or mixed rutile-$TiO_2$/ZnO. The change of degradation of the dye was investigated by UV-visible spectrophotometric method. The photocatalytic action of CdS was greater than ZnO and rutile-$TiO_2$ in account of low band gap energy of CdS. The rate of photocatalytic degradation reaction increased drastically in according to increasing ratio of ZnO on mixed rutile-$TiO_2$/ZnO. These photocatalytic effect of rutile-$TiO_2$ was suppressed by more stable rutile-$TiO_2$, doping the hydrolysis product with $Zn^{2+}$ prior to calcination onto the rutile-$TiO_2$ surface.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.08a
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• pp.130.1-130.1
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• 2013

We made attempts to improve photocatalytic activity of $TiO_2$ nanoparticles under visible light exposure by combining two additional treatments. N-doping of $TiO_2$ by ammonia gas treatment at $600^{\circ}C$ increased absorbance of visible light. By coating thin film of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), and subsequent vacuum-annealing at $800^{\circ}C$, $TiO_2$, became more hydrophilic, thereby enhancing photocatalytic activity of $TiO_2$. Four types of $TiO_2$ samples were prepared, bare-$TiO_2$, hydrophilic-modified $TiO_2$ ($h-PDMS/TiO_2$), N-doped $TiO_2$ ($N/TiO_2$) and hydrophilic-modified and N-doped $TiO_2$ ($h-PDMS/N/TiO_2$). Adsorption capability was evaluated under dark condition and photocatalytic activity of $TiO_2$ was evaluated by photodegradation of MB under blue LED (400 nm< ${\lambda}$) irradiation. N-doping on $TiO_2$ was characterized using XPS and hydrophilic modification of $TiO_2$ surface was analyzed by FT-IR spectrometer. It was found that N-doping and hydrophilic modification both had positive effect on enhancing adsorption capability and photocatalytic activity of $TiO_2$ at the same time. Particularly, N-doping enhanced visible light absorption of $TiO_2$, whereas hydrophilic surface modification increased MB adsorption capacity. By combining these two strategies, photocatalytic acitivity under visible light irradiation became the sum of individual effects of N-doping and hydrophilic modification.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2020.11a
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• pp.85-86
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• 2020

With the increasing importance of environmental issues, the cementitious materials with self-cleaning or photocatalytic properties by introducing TiO₂ materials have been gaining a lot of attention. In this work, the influence of TiO₂ particle size and structure on its photocatalytic effect in cement paste was investigated. The degradation of methylene blue solution was used as the parameter for evaluating the photocatalytic effect of micro-TiO2 (m-TiO₂), nano-TiO2 (n-TiO₂), and TiO₂ nanotube (TNT). Moreover, the effect of these three TiO₂ materials on the cement hydration products was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermgravimetric analysis (TG). According to the results, it can be found that all of the TiO₂ materials promoted the formation of hydration products, especially TNT. On the other hand, the m-TiO₂ exhibited a better photocatalytic effect compared to other materials.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.73-78
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• 2016

$TiO_2$ nanoparticles were synthesized by a sol-gel process using titanium tetra isopropoxide as a precursor at room temperature. Ag-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles were prepared by photoreduction of $AgNO_3$ on $TiO_2$ under UV light irradiation and calcinated at $400^{\circ}C$. Ag-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles were characterized for their structural and morphological properties by X-ray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The photocatalytic properties of the $TiO_2$ and Ag-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles were evaluated according to the degree of photocatalytic degradation of gaseous benzene under UV and visible light irradiation. To estimate the rate of photolysis under UV (${\lambda}=365nm$) and visible (${\lambda}{\geq}410nm$) light, the residual concentration of benzene was monitored by gas chromatography (GC). Both undoped/doped nanoparticles showed about 80 % of photolysis of benzene under UV light. However, under visible light irradiation Ag-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles exhibited a photocatalytic reaction toward the photodegradation of benzene more efficient than that of bare $TiO_2$. The enhanced photocatalytic reaction of Ag-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles is attributed to the decrease in the activation energy and to the existence of Ag in the $TiO_2$ host lattice, which increases the absorption capacity in the visible region by acting as an electron trapper and promotes charge separation of the photoinduced electrons ($e^-$) and holes ($h^+$). The use of Ag-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles preserved the option of an environmentally benign photocatalytic reaction using visible light; These particles can be applicable to environmental cleaning applications.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.597-603
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• 2002

Photocatalytic degradation of phenol was carried out with UV-illuminated TiO$_2$-SiO$_2$ in aqueous suspension. TiO$_2$-SiO$_2$ catalysts were prepared by sol-gel method from the titanium isopropoxide and tetraethylorthosilicate at different Ti/Si ratio and some commercial TiO$_2$ catalysts were used as purchased. All catalysts were characterized by X-ray Diffraction(XRD) and BET surface area analyzer. The effect of reaction conditions, such as initial concentration of phenol, reaction temperature and catalyst weight on the photocatalytic activity was studied. In addition, TiO$_2$-SiO$_2$(49: 1) prepared by sol-gel method showed higher activity than commercial TiO$_2$catalysts on the photocatalytic degradation of phenol. The addition of SiO$_2$ into TiO$_2$hepled to increase the thermal stability of titania which suppressed the formation of anatase into rutile. The photocatalytic degradation of phenol showed pseudo-1st order reaction and the degradation rate increases with decreasing initial phenol concentration.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.22 no.7
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• pp.352-357
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• 2012

$SnO_2$-mixed and Sn-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles were synthesized via a hydrothermal process. $SnO_2$-mixed $TiO_2$ nanoparticles prepared in a neutral condition consisted of anatase $TiO_2$ nanoparticles(diamond shape, ~25 nm) and cassiterite $SnO_2$ nanoparticles(spherical shape, ~10 nm). On the other hand, Sn-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles obtained under a high acidic condition showed a crystalline phase corresponding to rutile $TiO_2$. As the Sn content increased, the particle shape changed from rod-like(d~40 nm, 1~200 nm) to spherical(18 nm) with a decrease in the particle size. The peak shift in the XRD results and a change of the c-axis lattice parameter with the Sn content demonstrate that the $TiO_2$ in the rutile phase was doped with Sn. The photocatalytic activity of the $SnO_2$-mixed $TiO_2$ nanoparticles dramatically increased and then decreased when the $SnO_2$ content exceeded 4%. The increased photocatalytic activity is mainly attributed to the improved charge separation of the $TiO_2$ nanoparticles with the $SnO_2$. In the case of Sn-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles, the photocatalytic activity increased slightly with the Sn content due most likely to the larger energy bandgap caused by Sn-doping and the decrease in the particle size. The $SnO_2$-mixed $TiO_2$ nanoparticles generally exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than the Sn-doped $TiO_2$ nanoparticles. This was caused by the phase difference of $TiO_2$.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.46 no.6
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• pp.621-626
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• 2009

Fe-AC/Ti$O_2$ photocatalysts were prepared by a sol-gel method. The photocatalytic properties of Fe-AC/Ti$O_2$ photocatalysts for the purification of water have been investigated. The samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), specific surface area (BET), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). The photocatalytic activities were evaluated by the photocatalytic oxidation of methylene blue (MB) solution. It was found that the prepared Fe-AC/Ti$O_2$ composites have an excellent photocatalytic under visible light irradiation. A small amount of Fe ions in the AC/Ti$O_2$ composites could obviously enhance their photocatalytic activity. The high activities of the Fe-AC/Ti$O_2$ composites could be attributed to the results of the synergetic effects of the enhancement of the Fe element, the photocatalytic activity of Ti$O_2$, and the adsorption of AC.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.257-262
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• 2018

The coupling of two semiconducting materials is an efficient method to improve photocatalytic activity via the suppression of recombination of electron-hole pairs. In particular, the coupling between two different phases of $TiO_2$, i.e., anatase and rutile, is particularly attractive for photocatalytic activity improvement of rutile $TiO_2$ because these coupled $TiO_2$ powders can retain the benefits of $TiO_2$, one of the best photocatalysts. In this study, anatase $TiO_2$ nanoparticles are synthesized and coupled on the surface of rutile $TiO_2$ powders using a microemulsion method and heat treatment. Triton X-100, as a surfactant, is used to suppress the aggregation of anatase $TiO_2$ nanoparticles and disperse anatase $TiO_2$ nanoparticles uniformly on the surface of rutile $TiO_2$ powders. Rutile $TiO_2$ powders coupled with anatase $TiO_2$ nanoparticles are successfully prepared. Additionally, we compare the photocatalytic activity of these rutile-anatase coupled $TiO_2$ powders under ultraviolet (UV) light and demonstrate that the reason for the improvement of photocatalytic activity is microstructural.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.161-164
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• 2019

This study describes the development of graphene-$TiO_2$ conjugates for the enhancement of the photocatalytic efficiency of $TiO_2$. Graphene-based hybrid nanomaterials have attracted considerable attention because of the unique and advantageous properties of graphene. In the proposed hybrid nanomaterial, graphene serves as an electron acceptor to ensure fast charge transfer. Effective charge separation can, therefore, be achieved to slow down electron-hole recombination. This results in an enhancement of the photocatalytic activity of $TiO_2$. In addition, increased adsorption and interactions with the adsorbed reagents also lead to an improvement in the photocatalytic activity of graphene-$TiO_2$ hybrid nanomaterials. The acquired result is encouraging in that the photocatalytic activity of $TiO_2$ was initiated using visible light (630 nm) instead of the typical UV light.