Conjugate Polymer-clothed TiO₂@V₂O₅ nanobelts and their enhanced visible light photocatalytic performance in water remediation

An organic/inorganic core-shell nanobelt, TiO₂@V₂O₅-Polypyrrole (PPy) exhibiting high photocatalytic performance and water-stability was successfully prepared. The heterojunction between the TiO₂ nanobelt and V₂O₅ nanosheets improves both the ability to absorb visible light and the separation efficiency of the photogenerated carrier. When covered with the conjugated polymer PPy, the organic/inorganic nanocomposite absorbs throughout the whole visible light region and exhibits enhanced photocatalytic performance. Due to the outstanding transfer and separation efficiency of the electrons and holes, the new catalytic system is applied to remove water-soluble organic pollutants such as tetracycline (TC), doxycycline and oxytetracycline in high efficiency under visible light irradiation. Moreover, the PPy nanolayer prevents leakage of V₂O₅, which is beneficial to the construction of a stable heterostructure, and thus the prepared photocatalyst can be recycled. A plausible detailed mechanism for the TiO₂@V₂O₅-PPy photocatalytic system has also been proposed and confirmed. Our work provides a new method for the preparation of inorganic/organic hybrids and their potential application for use in water remediation.