Visible light photocatalytic activity of TiO2 nanoparticles hybridized by conjugated derivative of polybutadiene

A series of conjugated polymer/TiO2 (CP/TiO2) nanocomposites were prepared from TiO2 and commercial polybutadiene. The as-prepared CP/TiO2 nanocomposites were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman Spectroscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis DRS), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The photocatalytic activities of CP/TiO2 nanocomposites were investigated by monitoring the degradation of methyl orange aqueous solution under visible light irradiation. The effects of preparation conditions (such as the mass ratio of PB to TiO2 in suspensions for PB/TiO2 preparation, heat-treatment temperature and time) of CP/TiO2 nanocomposites on their visible light photocatalytic activity were investigated. The results show that the CP/TiO2 nanocomposites have excellent visible light photocatalytic activity. As the content of conjugated polymer on the TiO2 surface, heat-treatment temperature and time increase, the visible light photocatalytic activity increases at first and then decreases. The visible light photocatalytic mechanism of the CP/TiO2 nanocomposites has been discussed.