Copper reduced defective TiO ₂ nanoparticles with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity

Abstract

Abstract Defective TiO 2 attracted increasing attention due to its high photocatalytic activities. Herein, we report a facile and efficient method to fabricate gray defective TiO 2 by vacuum annealing raw TiO 2 materials with copper powders. The treated TiO 2 nanoparticles exhibit significantly enhanced visible‐light‐photocatalytic performance with photo‐degradation rate increased to 400% as that of pristine commercial P25 under visible light. The performance enhancements can be attributed to the disordered structure, optimized optical and electronic properties of defective TiO 2 . In addition, this facile Cu reduction method provides an effective way to generate defective sites in other metal oxides for various potential applications.