Synthesis, Surface Acidity and Photocatalytic Activity of WO₃/TiO₂Nanocomposites – An Overview

Selective photoelectrocatalytic oxidation of 3-methylpyridine to vitamin B3 by WO3 decorated nanotube-structured TiO2

Nanotube-structured TiO₂ electrodes on Ti plates were formed in ethylene glycol solution by the anodic oxidation method applied for different times and calcined at 500 °C. Different amounts of WO₃ were decorated on the nanotube surfaces electrochemically. The electrodes were characterized, and the effects of the nanotube length on the Ti plate, decorated WO₃ amount, electrolyte concentration, applied potential, and type of radiation source on the oxidation of 3-methylpyridine were investigated, together with the product distribution/selectivity. In a photoelectrocatalytic system, the vitamin B₃ yield increased significantly (ca. 17 fold) under UVA by decorating nanotube-structured TiO₂ with WO₃, whilst low reaction rates and no products were found under Vis irradiation, as only unselective photolytic reactions occurred. This unexpected result was clarified for the first time in the literature.

Synthesis of tungsten oxide/ amino-functionalized sugarcane bagasse derived-carbon quantum dots (WO3/N-CQDs) composites for methylene blue removal

In this present study, the tungsten oxide/amino-functionalized sugarcane bagasse derived-carbon quantum dots (WO₃/N-CQDs) composite has successfully been prepared through a simple mixing process. The WO₃ was synthesized through a precipitation method, and CQDs were amino-functionalized using ethylenedinitrilotetraacetic acid (EDTA) and ethylenediamine (EDA) through one-pot hydrothermal method. It is revealed that N-CQDs incorporation into WO₃ alters the bandgap energy, crystallinity, surface area, and photoluminescence (PL) properties. The produced composites exhibit higher monoclinic WO₃ crystallinity, larger surface area, lower bandgap energy and quenched photoluminescence intensity. The as-prepared WO₃/N-CQDs composites exhibit better adsorption and photocatalytic degradation performance of methylene blue (MB) than the pristine WO₃. It shows that the combination of N-CQDs and WO₃ enhanced visible light absorption, by lowering the bandgap energy of WO₃ from 2.175 to 1.495 eV. The best performance composite is WO₃/N-CQDs EDA 2.5% with an efficiency of 96.86%, removal rate constant of 0.02017/min, and chemical oxidation demand (COD) removal efficiency achieved 84.61%. Moreover, the WO₃/N-CQDs EDA 2.5% shows a significant photocatalytic activity even at higher MB initial concentration with 92.93% removal for 50 ppm MB. Subsequently, the composite also has good stability after a sequential 3-times cycle of degradation with 86.85% removal. The increasing photocatalytic performance is affected by the quenching effect of PL and lower bandgap energy. The lower intensity of the PL indicates the reduced charge carrier recombination resulting in increased photocatalytic activity. The combination of N-CQDs and WO₃ resulted in improved photodegradation, which shows its significant potential to be utilized for wastewater treatment.

Conversion of methanol on rutile TiO2(110) and tungsten oxide clusters: 2. The role of defects and electron transfer in bifunctional oxidic photocatalysts

The photochemical conversion of organic compounds on tailored transition metal oxide surfaces by UV irradiation has found wide applications ranging from the production of chemicals to the degradation of organic pollutants e.g. in waste water treatment. Here, we present a systematic surface science-based study of the UV photoconversion of methanol on a rutile TiO2(110) surface. Under the used conditions, the dominant photoreaction is the photo-oxidation forming formaldehyde, that is drastically boosted by the presence of adsorbed oxygen as well as (sub-)surface defects such as oxygen vacancies and Ti3+ interstitials. Moreover, a photostimulated and Ti3+ mediated C-C coupling was observed leading to the production of ethene. We have further deposited tungsten oxide clusters on the rutile surface and examined the impact on the methanol photochemistry. In this case, the C-C coupling can be suppressed. Surprisingly, especially for high Ti3+ contents the population of the photochemical pathway is quenched in favor of the population of the thermal reaction yielding more methane from the deoxygenation reaction. So, the common concept that long time charge separation is efficient by combining two photocatalysts with similar band gaps, but different work functions in order to enhance photochemical yields is apparently too naive for certain systems. We attribute the loss of photoproducts with tungsten oxide coadsorption to the "pinning" of Ti3+ centers and a related enhancement of electron density near the oxide clusters which makes a concomitant recombination of the photochemical relevant holes with the excess surface electrons more likely.

Preparation of Propanols by Glycerol Hydrogenolysis over Bifunctional Nickel-Containing Catalysts

The paper presents the results obtained in studying glycerol hydrogenolysis into 1-propanol and 2-propanol over bifunctional Ni/WO₃-TiO₂ and Ni/WO₃-ZrO₂ catalysts in the flow system. Due to the optimal combination of acidic and hydrogenation properties of the heterogeneous catalysts, they exhibit higher performance in glycerol conversion into C₃ alcohols, although the process is carried out in rather mild conditions. At the reaction temperature of 250 °C and hydrogen pressure of 3 MPa, the total yield of 1-propanol and 2-propanol reaches 95%, and the glycerol conversion is close to 100%.

Photocatalytic removal of gaseous nitrogen oxides using WO3/TiO2 particles under visible light irradiation: Effect of surface modification

Photocatalytic nanoparticles have been receiving considerable attention for their potential use in many environmental management applications, including urban air quality control. This paper investigates the performance of surface modified WO₃/TiO₂ composite particles in removing gaseous nitrogen oxides (NO_x) under visible light irradiation. The WO₃/TiO₂ composite particles were synthesized using a modified wet chemical method with different concentrations of NaOH solution used as a surface modification agent for the host TiO₂ particles. The NO_x removal efficiency of the WO₃/TiO₂ particles was evaluated using a lab-scale continuous gas flow photo-reactor with a gas contact time of 1 min. Results showed that surface modification using NaOH can enhance the photocatalytic activity of the WO₃/TiO₂ particles. The NO_x removal efficiency of the surface modified WO₃/TiO₂ was greater than 90%, while that of WO₃/TiO₂ particles prepared by the conventional wet chemical method was ∼75%. The enhanced removal efficiency might be attributed to the formation of oxygen vacancies on the TiO₂ surface, providing sites for WO₃ particles to effectively bind with TiO₂. However, excess amount of NaOH >3 M deteriorated the photocatalytic performance due to the increased agglomeration of the host TiO₂ particles.

Magnetically recoverable TiO2-WO3 photocatalyst to oxidize bisphenol A from model wastewater under simulated solar light

A novel magnetically recoverable, visible light active TiO₂-WO₃ composite (Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@TiO₂-WO₃) was prepared to enable the photocatalyst recovery after the degradation of bisphenol A (BPA) under simulated solar light. For comparison, the photocatalytic activity of other materials such as non-magnetic TiO₂-WO₃, Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@TiO₂, TiO₂, and the commercial TiO₂ P25 was also evaluated under the studied experimental conditions. The structure and morphology of the synthesized materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), and electron dispersion spectroscopy (EDS). Moreover, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area and magnetic properties of the samples were determined. The Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@TiO₂-WO₃ and TiO₂-WO₃ led to a BPA degradation of 17.50 and 27.92 %, respectively, after 2 h of the simulated solar light irradiation. Even though their activity was lower than that of P25, which degraded completely BPA after 1 h, our catalysts were magnetically separable for their further reuse in the treatment. Furthermore, the influence of the water matrix in the photocatalytic activity of the samples was studied in municipal wastewater. Finally, the identification of reaction intermediates was performed and a possible BPA degradation pathway was proposed to provide a better understanding of the degradation process. Graphical abstract ᅟ.