Photcatalysis efficiency of the concept of reductive and oxidative energy storage was investigated. When TiO2 is subject to UV illumination, electrons from the valence band are transferred to the conduction band. That, in turn, induces electron transfer from the p-type semiconductor to the conduction band of TiO2. The hole of the p-type semiconductor is not stable, and intercalation from an electrolyte is needed. However, all energy storage photocatalysts that have been developed so far are the reductive energy storage type. In addition, the combination of the oxidative energy storage type with the reductive type would achieve effective storage and usage of solar energy. However, TiO2 is an n-type semiconductor, from which electrons in its conduction band are transferred, whereas the holes in its valence band are transferred in a lower extent, so that storage of the oxidative energy of TiO2 is expected to be challenging. Hence, the purpose of this work was to investigate the possibility of using energy stored in NiO/TiO2 bilayer films to activate the photocalytic reaction in the absence of light. The catalyst was tested for its photocatalytic activity in the degradation of acid orange 7.

NiO/TiO2 bilayer films for photocatalytic degradation of Acid Orange 7 in the absence of light

248th National Meeting (2014)

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