Construction of N-doped TiO 2 /MoS 2 heterojunction with synergistic effect for enhanced visible photodegradation activity

Abstract An N-doped TiO2/MoS2 heterojunction photocatalyst constructed by two-dimension MoS2 nanosheets and N-doped TiO2 nanoparticles was successfully synthesized by a hydrothermal method. The synthesized N-TiO2/MoS2 composites were characterized by XRD, XPS, TEM, UV–vis DRS and PL, and its visible photocatalytic activity was evaluated by degradation of methylene blue. The results showed that N-doped TiO2/MoS2 heterojunction photocatalyst achieved more enhanced photocatalytic activity compared with pure TiO2, MoS2 and N-doped TiO2 for degradation of MB. Trapping tests with different scavengers indicated that not hydroxyl radicals ( OH) but superoxide radicals ( O2−) and photogenerated holes (h+) were highly responsible for the degradation process. The reusable experiments showed that the prepared N-doped TiO2/MoS2 heterojunction photocatalyst was stable during the photodegradation of MB and will have practical applications for environmental remediation.