The size controlled synthesis of CuS/P25 hetero junction solar-energy-materials and their applications in photocatalytic degradation of dyes

In this paper highly dispersed Cu 2 S nanocrystals loaded on commercially available TiO 2 form P25, denoted as Cu 2 S/P25, was firstly fabricated by a deposition-precipitation process, to establish close pn hetero junctions to improve the visible light activity and the stability of Cu 2 S on the catalyst surface. The catalysts were characterized by TEM, SEM, XRD, XPS, Raman, etc. , the photocatalytic degradation kinetics of Cu 2 S-loaded TiO 2 nanoparticles on methylene blue was systematically investigated. The results show that a lower amount of loading of Cu 2 S on Cu 2 S/P25 led to a higher photocatalytic degradation performance under visible light irradiation. The Cu 2 S quantum size effects on the absorption band edge and photo induced catalytic performance were also investigated. The Cu 2 S quantum size effects and coverage effects on absorption edge, Raman frequency and photo-induced catalytic performance were investigated.