Defective TiO₂ Nanotube Arrays for Efficient Photoelectrochemical Degradation of Organic Pollutants.

Content Provider	Europe PMC
Author	Machreki, Manel Chouki, Takwa Tyuliev, Georgi Žigon, Dušan Ohtani, Bunsho Loukanov, Alexandre Stefanov, Plamen Emin, Saim
Copyright Year	2023
Abstract	Oxygen vacancies (OVs) are one of the most critical factorsthatenhance the electrical and catalytic characteristics of metal oxide-basedphotoelectrodes. In this work, a simple procedure was applied to preparereduced TiO2 nanotube arrays (NTAs) (TiO2–x) via a one-step reduction method using NaBH4. A series of characterization techniques were used to studythe structural, optical, and electronic properties of TiO2–x NTAs. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirmedthe presence of defects in TiO2–x NTAs. Photoacoustic measurements were used to estimate the electron-trapdensity in the NTAs. Photoelectrochemical studies show that the photocurrentdensity of TiO2–x NTAs was nearly3 times higher than that of pristine TiO2. It was foundthat increasing OVs in TiO2 affects the surface recombinationcenters, enhances electrical conductivity, and improves charge transport.For the first time, a TiO2–x photoanodewas used in the photoelectrochemical (PEC) degradation of a textiledye (basic blue 41, B41) and ibuprofen (IBF) pharmaceutical usingin situ generated reactive chlorine species (RCS). Liquid chromatographycoupled with mass spectrometry was used to study the mechanisms forthe degradation of B41 and IBF. Phytotoxicity tests of B41 and IBFsolutions were performed using Lepidium sativum L. to evaluate the potential acute toxicity before and after thePEC treatment. The present work provides efficient PEC degradationof the B41 dye and IBF in the presence of RCS without generating harmfulproducts.
Journal	ACS Omega
Volume Number	8
PubMed Central reference number	PMC10286085
Issue Number	24
PubMed reference number	37360499
e-ISSN	24701343
DOI	10.1021/acsomega.3c00820
Language	English
Publisher	American Chemical Society
Publisher Date	2023-06-07
Access Restriction	Open
Rights License	Permits the broadest form of re-use including for commercial purposes, provided that author attribution and integrity are maintained (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). © 2023 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Chemistry Chemical Engineering