Preparation of Ti mesh supported WO3/TiO2 nanotubes composite and its application for photocatalytic degradation under visible light

Abstract Ti mesh supported WO3/TiO2 nanotubes composite (WTM) was successfully fabricated via anodic oxidation and electrodeposition methods, and then used for photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB). The experimental results showed that the degradation rate of MB was 72% after 120 min by using WTM, much better than that using traditional Ti plate supported WO3/TiO2 nanotubes composite (WTP). Moreover, WTM also presented a much higher difference of degradation rate with and without stirring as compared to WTP. These advantages can be ascribed to the porous characteristic of Ti mesh, which can enhance the diffusion/transport capability of the pollutants, thus increasing the degradation efficiency. On the other hand, it is speculated that such porous characteristic is also beneficial to the light utilization, thereby resulting in relatively lower energy consumption in practical application.