Preparation of Mesoporous Titanium Oxide and Effect of Cupric Ion on Its Photocatalytic Oxidation Activity

Mesoporous titanium oxide (TiO2) was prepared hydrothermally from tetra-n-butyl titanate using cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTMAB) as template agent.Samples of the mesoporous TiO2 were characterized by X-ray diffraction,transmission electron microscopy and N2-adsorption technique.It was found that the mesoporous TiO2 has an average porosity of 4.4 nm.By using methyl orange as a model compound,the effect of addition of Cu2+ ion on the photocatalytic activity of mesoporous TiO2 was studied under UV-irradiation.As shown by experimental results,the photocatalytic activity of mesoporous TiO2 was found to be comparable to that of the commercially available P25 nanotitanium dioxide.The photocatalytic activity of mesoporous TiO2 was enhanced by the addition of cupric ion.The photocatalytic degradation rate of methyl orange was found to be proportional directly with the intensity of UV-irradiation.