Synthesis and catalytic performance of hierarchical TiO2 hollow sphere/reduced graphene oxide hybrid nanostructures

Hierarchical TiO2 hollow spheres partially wrapped with reduced graphene oxide were synthesized through a facile three-step wet chemistry process. This method involves preparation of amine-modified TiO2 hollow spheres, assembly of amine-modified TiO2 hollow spheres and graphene oxide via peptide bond ( CONH) formation, and final hydrothermal reduction of graphene oxide. The prepared hybrid composites could be used as photocatalysts to reduce 4-nitroaniline with excellent photocatalytic performance. This property is attributed to the efficient nanostructures of the composites, which result in obvious improvements in interfacial charge separation and transfer efficiency, reactant adsorptivity, and light harvesting. This study provides guidance for future designs of new graphene-based composites with enhanced photocatalytic reduction performance. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.