High activity of brookite TiO2 nanoparticles in the photocatalytic abatement of ammonia in water
Abstract The effects of the TiO 2 crystal structure and its surface modification with Pt nanoparticles on the photocatalytic oxidation of NH 3 in the aqueous phase were studied with home-made TiO 2 photocatalyst powders synthesized by a thermo-hydrolysis approach that allowed a fine control of the crystallographic phase composition. Ammonia conversion and the selectivity toward mildly oxidized N 2 and highly oxidized nitrite and nitrate anions were monitored during the runs. Pure brookite powders modified by Pt nanoparticles, deposited either from a colloidal suspension or by deposition–precipitation, were found to be the most efficient photocatalysts in NH 3 degradation, with a desired goo…
Reduced grey brookite for noble metal free photocatalytic H2evolution
Herein we introduce for the first time a reduced “grey” brookite TiO2 photocatalyst, produced by thermal hydrogenation of brookite nanoparticles, that shows a remarkable noble metal free photocatalytic H2 evolution. Its activity is substantially higher than that of other TiO2 polymorphs, i.e. anatase or rutile, comparably sized and activated by hydrogenation under optimized conditions. Along with brookite powders, an oriented brookite single crystal was investigated as a defined surface to confirm the effects of the hydrogenation treatment. By a combination of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), electron and X-ray characterization techniques applied to the powders and single crystal, we …