PANI/TiO2 nanocomposites spheres were synthesized using a simple and efficient one-step hydrothermal process. The morphology and structure of PANI/TiO2 nanocomposites spheres were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. The PANI/TiO2 nanocomposite sphere-based sensor exhibits good selectivity, sensitivity (5.4 to 100 ppm), repeatability, long-term stability and low detection limit (0.5 ppm) to ammonia at room temperature (20 ± 5°C). It also shows a good linearity relationship in the range of 0.5–5 and 5–100 ppm. The excellent NH3 sensing performance is mainly due to the formation of the p-n heterostructure in the nanocomposites.
Like Ouyang,Yuan Wang,Ping Zhang,Xinlong Wang,Shaojun Yuan
Arsenite contamination in groundwater seriously impairs human health due to its high mobility and toxicity. Herein, a novel heterostructured MWCNTs@PANI@TiO2 nanocomposite was synthesized via a one-pot polymerization process for the adsorption and photocatalytic oxidation of As(III) from aqueous solution. In the dark, the as-synthesized nanocomposite had a high adsorption capacity of As(III) at about 0.29 mmol·g–1 with an initial As(III) concentration of 0.067–0.801 mmol·L–1 at 298.15 K and exhibited a stable adsorption capacity in a wide pH range of 2–9. The adsorption kinetics of As(III) on MWCNTs@PANI@TiO2 was in accordance with the PSO model and was mainly controlled by chemical adsorption. Under visible light irradiation, the adsorption amount of As(III) on MWCNTs@PANI@TiO2 was substantially enhanced by about 57%, and the photocatalytic conversion of As(III) to As(V) was found to be caused by the photogenerated holes and superoxide free radical (•O2–). The hypothesized adsorption mechanisms of As(III) and As(V) ions on the nanocomposite were possibly ascribed to surface complexation and hydrogen-bonded interactions. The heterostructured MWCNTs@PANI@TiO2 nanocomposite offers a promising candidate for highly efficient removal of As(III) ions from arsenite-polluted groundwater.