Preparation, characterization and photocatalytic properties of ZnTiO₃ powders

A novel photocatalyst ZnTiO₃ powder was prepared by a modified alcoholysis method, using ethylene glycol as reagent/solvent and acetylacetone as stabilizer. A series of analytical techniques were used to characterize the crystallinity, composition, bandgap, morphology, specific surface area and grain size of ZnTiO₃ powders. The relationship between the physicochemical property and the photocatalytic activity was deeply investigated, too. It is found that the photocatalytic activity is dependent on the phase of catalysts. The product of ZnTiO₃ with pure hexagonal-phase calcined at 800 °C for 3 h exhibits the maximum photocatalytic performance in the photochemical degradation of the azo dye methyl violet under solar light irradiation. The processing parameters such as the concentration of catalysts and the pH value also play an important role in tuning the photocatalytic activity. The optimal concentration and pH value of the pure hexagonal-phase ZnTiO₃ is around 4 g/L and 8 in a 10 mg/L dye-aqueous solution, respectively.