Magnetic photocatalysts containing TiO2 nanocrystals: Morphology effect on photocatalytic activity

Fe3O4@TiO2 magnetic photocatalysts containing sub-10-nm TiO2 nanocrystals with two different morphologies (nanoparticles and nanorods) were prepared via a facile straight dipping process. A series of comparative experiments on organic pollutant degradation demonstrated that Fe3O4@TiO2 nanorods show superior activity and faster degradation rates than Fe3O4@TiO2 nanoparticles. Combined with the study of high resolution transmission electron microscopy, crystal models are given to analyze the morphology effect of TiO2 nanocrystals on their photocatalytic activities for organic degradation. TiO2 nanorods with more (100) crystal planes, which have relatively higher surface energy and relative higher density of Ti atoms, showed a higher activity than that of TiO2 nanoparticles. Furthermore, both Fe3O4@TiO2 nanorods and Fe3O4@TiO2 nanoparticles show better photocatalytic activities than several comparison Fe3O4@TiO2 samples due to the strong size effect arising from the tiny size of TiO2 nanorods and nanoparticles. These magnetic photocatalysts also show advantages in separation and recycling utilization.