Structural engineering of Ti3C2-TiO2 nanoflowers modified with oxygen vacancy for photocatalytic applications

Titanium carbide (Ti3C2) is a promising photocatalyst to address environmental issues and energy applications. A novel in situ technique used to synthesize Ti3C2-TiO2 nanoflower, employing a combination of oxidation, alkalization, ion exchange, and calcination of Ti3C2 to enhance photocatalytic activity. During oxidation, Ti3C2 undergoes a structural change where carbon atoms are replaced by oxygen, forming TiO2. This transformation converts Ti3C2 to TiO2 from a highly conductive, near-zero band gap material to a semiconductor with a substantial band gap, oxygen vacancies, enhancing charge separation and migration, exhibiting an essential boost in photocatalytic performance. The photocatalytic efficiency of Ti3C2-TiO2-2 increased substantially due to appropriate bandgap (3.02 eV), excellent photocurrent response (8.2 μA cm−2), and large specific surface area (129.9 m2 g-1). The photocatalytic H2 evolution rate of 1647.6 μmol g−1 h−1, CO2 reduction rate of 7.8 μmol g−1 h−1, and dye removal efficiency for Ciprofloxacin (98.5 %, in 90 min), TC (99.2 %, in 60-min) confirms effectiveness of created TiO2 on the surface of Ti3C2. The synergistic effect of Ti3C2 and TiO2 produces a Schottky junction that improves the charge separation and efficiently hinders the recombination rate for excellent photocatalytic efficiency. This study presents an innovative approach to designing advanced nanostructures for improved photocatalytic efficiency.