Visible photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical activities of TiO 2 nanobelts modified by In 2 O 3 nanoparticles

Novel In O nanoparticle/TiO nanobelt heterostructures with enhanced visible-light photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance were successfully prepared via a facile hydrothermal method. Well-dispersed In O nanoparticles with small sizes are uniformly attached on the surface of TiO nanobelts to form In O nanoparticle/TiO nanobelt heterostructures. The TiO nanobelts as backbones restrict the aggregation of In O nanoparticles, resulting in the formation of smaller In O nanoparticles with more interaction sites for pollutants. The visible photocatalytic activity of as-prepared heterostructures for degradation of methyl blue (MB) is higher than those of TiO nanobelts and In O nanoparticles alone. Moreover, the In O nanoparticle/TiO nanobelt heterostructure shows an enhanced PEC performance under irradiation of visible light. The enhanced photocatalytic and PEC activities are mainly ascribed to the synergic effect of efficient charge separation of heterostructure, visible-light harvesting ability of In O , and the formation of preferential adsorption sites by the small size of In O nanoparticles. Finally, based on the experimental results of Mott-Schottky, UV-vis DRS, photocurrent and open-circuit voltage response, a possible photocatalytic mechanism over the In O nanoparticle/TiO nanobelt heterostructure is proposed.