Synthesis of heterostructured Pd@TiO2/TiOF2 nanohybrids with enhanced photocatalytic performance

TiO 2 /TiOF 2 heterostructured nanocomposites has been synthesized through a solvothermal method and characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electronic microscopy, transmission electronic microscopy, nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherms, UV–vis and photo-luminescent spectroscopy. It was found that, compared with single TiOF 2 or TiO 2 , the as-prepared TiO 2 /TiOF 2 nanocomposites exhibited superior photoactivity towards the degradation of organic pollutants, i.e . rhodamine B and solar hydrogen evolution. The results are in accordance with the prohibition of photogenerated electrons and holes recombination in these two samples under light illumination. The photocatalytic activity can be further boosted by introducing Pd nanoparticles onto the surfaces of TiO 2 /TiOF 2 through a simple deposition method without using any stabilizers, which is probably attributed to the enhanced visible-light absorption as well as the facilitated charge-carrier separation after the introduction of Pd nanoparticles. The synergistic effect between TiOF 2 and TiO 2 was discussed and was responsible for the enhancement of their activity in comparison with single counterpart.