Photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical oxidation mechanisms of methanol on TiO2 in aqueous solution

Methanol is an available, small, and colorless molecule, which can be used for the photocatalytic activity evaluation without the sensitization problem associated with most dye molecules. Thus, TiO2 suspended in aqueous methanol solutions is commonly employed as a model test for the photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants in aerobic system or for photocatalytic hydrogen production in absence of molecular oxygen. It is, hence, important to explore the mechanism of its photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical oxidation on TiO2 in aqueous solution. In this mini-review, the possible mechanisms for water and methanol oxidation on TiO2 will therefore be presented and discussed.