Ag deposited mixed phase titania visible light photocatalyst - Superiority of Ag-titania and mixed phase titania co-junction

•Co-junction of mixed phase TiO2 homo-junction and plasmonic Ag/TiO2 junction formed.•Photocatalytic activity compared with mixed phase TiO2 and monophasic plasmonic Ag/TiO2(A).•Multiplying effect of co-junction on the activity under visible light illumination seen.

Photocatalyst nanoparticles of Ag deposited anatase titania with plasmonic junction and mixed phase titania with homo-junction were prepared and their physico-chemical characterization was done using different analytical techniques. Their photocatalytic performance in visible light was found to be comparable albeit ascribable to different junction characteristics with identical consequences in terms of photoactivity. It has been shown that co-junction of the combination of both in plasmonic Ag nanoparticle deposited mixed phase titania has a multiplying effect and yields a superior visible light photocatalyst. The combination showed 3.4 times more activity than the two in isolation in degradation of methylene blue. Standard photocatalyst Degussa P25 (DP25) is also used as a reference catalyst to compare the photoactivity.

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