Impact of overlapping Fe/TiO₂ prepared by sol-gel and dip-coating process on CO₂ reduction

Abstract

Fe-doped TiO₂ (Fe/TiO₂) film photocatalyst was prepared by sol-gel and dip-coating process to extend its photoresponsivity to the visible spectrum. To promote the CO₂ reduction performance with the photocatalyst, some types of base materials used for coating Fe/TiO₂, which were netlike glass fiber and Cu disc, were investigated. The characterization of prepared Fe/TiO₂ film coated on netlike glass fiber and Cu disc was analyzed by SEM and EPMA. In addition, the CO₂ reduction performance of Fe/TiO₂ film coated on netlike glass disc, Cu disc, and their overlap was tested under a Xe lamp with or without ultraviolet (UV) light, respectively. The results show that the concentration of produced CO increases by Fe doping irrespective of base material used under the illumination condition with UV light as well as that without UV light. Since the electron transfer between two overlapped photocatalysts is promoted, the peak concentration of CO for the Fe/TiO₂ double overlapping is approximately 1.5 times as large as the Fe/TiO₂ single overlapping under the illumination condition with UV light, while the promotion ratio is approximately 1.1 times under that without UV light.