Selective aqueous oxidation of aromatic alcohols under solar light in the presence of TiO2 modified with different metal species

AbstractA set of metals modified TiO2 photocatalysts were prepared starting from titanium tetraisopropoxyde and different metal precursors to study the influence of the addition of the various foreign agents on the physico-chemical and photocatalytic properties of the catalysts. The powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, specific surface area measurements, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, photoluminescence, temperature programmed desorption after CO2 adsorption. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated using as probe reactions the partial oxidation of three aromatic alcohols: benzyl al…