H2Ti3O7 nanowires as a high-performance photocatalytic and surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrate

In the present work, we reported one kind of photocatalytic and surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrate, H2Ti3O7 nanowires, which prepared on the Ti foil by the hydrothermal and ion-exchange methods. The morphologies, crystal structures, chemical compositions, optical properties of the as-prepared substrates investigated via the different kinds of characterization techniques. H2Ti3O7 nanowires revealed remarkably enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity for the degradation of rhodamine 6 G solution compared to Na2Ti3O7 nanowires, TiO2 nanowires, and commercial photocatalysts (TiO2 and ZnO nanoparticles). These results attributed to the H2Ti3O7 nanowires with a higher concentration of oxygen vacancies can enhance the visible-light absorbance, resulting in the higher photocatalytic activity under the visible-light irradiation. The radical-trapping test shows that holes and hydroxyl radicals played central roles in rhodamine 6 G photodegradation. The deposition of Ag nanoparticles on the H2Ti3O7 nanowires can also use as a highly sensitive surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrate for detecting rhodamine 6 G solution with a concentration as low as 10(-9) M by the ion-sputtering system.