Ionic liquid-assisted synthesis of Bi 12 TiO 20 nanostructures and their visible-light photocatalytic performance

The effect of ionic liquid on the morphology, optical and photocatalytic properties of the products was investigated. By slightly adjusting the amount of [BMIM]Br, Bi 12 TiO 20 nanoparticles, nanorods and raft-like ones with different crystallinities, surface areas and bandgap energies could be obtained.

In these three kinds of morphologies, Bi 12 TiO 20 nanorods with average diameter of 20–30 nm and length of 100–270 nm demonstrate the highest photocatalytic performance for its degradation of methylene orange under visible-light irradiation. The results suggest that the presence of ionic liquid in the synthetic system plays a key role in tuning the phase composition, the shape, size and purity of Bi 12 TiO 20 powders, and hence affects their morphology-associated optical adsorption ability and photocatalytic activity.