Author(s)

Céline J. Bodson, Sophie L. Pirard, René Pirard, Ludivine Tasseroul, Catherine Bied, Michel Wong Chi Man, Benoît Heinrichs, Stéphanie D. Lambert

Charles Gerhardt Montpellier Institute (UMR5253 CNRS-UM2-ENSCM-UM1), Montpellier, Franc.
Charles Gerhardt Montpellier Institute (UMR5253 CNRS-UM2-ENSCM-UM1), Montpellier, France.
Laboratory of Chemical Engineering—Nanomaterials, Catalysis, Electrochemistry, University of Liege, Liege, Belgium.

In the present study, sol-gel process is used to synthesize P-doped TiO₂ xerogels by the cogelation method of a functionalized P alkoxide, (NH₂-(CH₂)₂-NH-(CH₂)₂-P(O)-(OC₂H₅)₂) with Ti(OC₃H₇)₄ in either 2-methoxyethanol or isopropanol. The phosphorus-doping improved the thermal stability of titania and decreased the phase transformation of anatase into rutile. This modification by phosphorus shifted the absorption edge of titania to the visible region as proved by Diffuse reflectance measurements, and thus offers the possibility to produce visible light effective TiO₂ photocatalyst. The excellent photocatalytic activity of P-doped TiO₂ xerogels compared to pure TiO₂ could be explained by its high surface area and small TiO₂-anatase crystallite size. From these results, it was proved by using three different models that phosphorus intrinsically influences the photocatalytic activity.

TiO₂ xerogel, Phosphorus-Doping, Sol-Gel, p-Nitrophenol Degradation, Photocatalysis

Bodson, C. , Pirard, S. , Pirard, R. , Tasseroul, L. , Bied, C. , Wong Chi Man, M. , Heinrichs, B. and D. Lambert, S. (2014) P-Doped Titania Xerogels as Efficient UV-Visible Photocatalysts. Journal of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, 2, 17-32. doi: 10.4236/msce.2014.28004.